James Van Der Beek’s parenting saga is taking us on a wild ride. Apparently, the man who once ruled teen hearts on Dawson’s Creek is now ruling a kingdom of six (yes, six) kids with his wife, Kimberly. Let’s give this guy a round of applause because it takes superhuman patience to manage that many children without a cape or a sitcom laugh track.
So, here’s the rundown. James, 47 years young and still holding his own in the chaotic world of family life, decided he needed to take some “extreme measures” to, let’s say, cap the kid count. Yep, he went ahead with a vasectomy, a.k.a. “Operation: Family Full.” But not before he delivered the most dad speech ever to his kids about his newly altered “private parts” and how they should try really, really hard not to treat him like a jungle gym. “Kids, Dad’s had a little surgery down south, so how about we avoid tackle hugs for a while?” Classic.
Why the vasectomy? Well, according to James, he and Kimberly were apparently too good at “not not getting pregnant.” Of the six kiddos—Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwen, and little Jeremiah—only one of them was the result of an actual plan. Just one! James says the other five were a bit like surprise gifts from the stork, sent on a wing and a prayer.
Not to make light of it, but James also shared that he’d been diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in 2023, which puts a whole new perspective on this journey. He’s grateful for the sheer luck of his big family. “We didn’t plan it, but we’re so thankful,” he said. “It’s a real blessing, and honestly, we don’t take it for granted.”
And honestly, we just want to know: When is Netflix going to make James and the Never-Ending Family Tree a reality series?
