Joshua Jackson reveals 'pain' after James Van Der Beek's tragic death: 'A lot to grapple'

Joshua Jackson dished on the heartbreak he suffered after the death of his longtime pal and costar, James Van Der Beek.

“He and I shared this very important moment in both of our lives, which was the time of Dawson's Creek,” the 47-year-old actor told People. 

He continued, “And I think we both look back on that time with great fondness and recognize that it shaped what was to come in many, many ways. But I also would say that it is just a footnote in the man that he became.”

Jackson went on to pour his heart out, “The way that his faith allowed him to find grace in the face of this impossible thing, and even before his diagnosis, the commitment that he had to being a good husband and a phenomenal father, a deeply curious, loving, kind, present father, those are the things I think that he actually accomplished in his life.”

“And the pain that I feel in this is recognizing this man, recognizing this father and feeling the loss for his family in this.”

“It's been a lot to grapple with over the course of the last month,” he added.