Tell me about ultimately getting Jack (Kerr Smith) and Pacey’s brother Doug (Dylan Neal) together. The series was set to end with the season 6 episode “Joey Potter and Capeside Redemption,” which sent Joey (Katie Holmes) off to Paris. Below, in our extended Q&A, he details how he decided what that new tale would be (RIP, Jen), when he changed his mind about who Joey would end up with romantically, and why you shouldn’t hold your breath for a reunion movie. I remember Michelle was a little scared and nervous. I had three days or less to finish the second hour. If ”Dawson’s Creek” seemed more like ”Melrose Place” last season (what with Dawson going on a drinking jag, his dad going after a younger woman, Pacey’s girlfriend, Andie, going wacko, and the teens’ hangout going up in flames), fear not. So you just have to go with it. She goes, “Well, what if we do a reunion show? He often co-writes episodes with Julie Plec. She always felt like the outsider, the misfit. And then I thought, you know, the thing about Dawson’s Creek was that it was always supposed to be my version of a coming-of-age story — which was all of these kids grew up on the Peach Pit. Credit: According to Kevin Williamson… He is known for creating the WB teen drama series Dawson's Creek (1998–2003), the CW supernatural drama series The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017), the Fox crime thriller series The Following (2013–2015), the CBS crime drama series Stalker (2014–2015), and the CBS All … Kevin Williamson is an American television and film writer and producer. Dawson's Creek, created by Kevin Williamson, stars James Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson and Michelle Williams. Of course, while trying to stay the keeping-it-real course, they’ll have to find a way to write in teenybopper Britney Spears, who’s set to splash into the ”Creek” this season. KEVIN WILLIAMSON: It came at the world’s worst time. No one’s story was quite like Dawson’s Creek creator Kevin Williamson’s. He reveals why Jen had to be the character to die. Is there anything you’ll do differently going into the next series finale you do? For more on TV finales, pick up the April 11 issue of Entertainment Weekly. I always felt like it could have been better structured. I was basically living my childhood all over again. I had to instantly rewind it and watch it again. 'Dawson's Creek' series finale: Kevin Williamson on saying goodbye By Mandi Bierly Updated April 15, 2014 at 12:00 PM EDT ”It’ll be hard,” he admits. Offers may be subject to change without notice. In his Spielbergian head, he got the girl. ”’Dawson’ will have something to say instead of the cast reacting to bigger-than-life plots.”, Gone is creator Kevin Williamson, who, besides his movie work (”Scream”), has created ABC’s new drama ”Wasteland.” Although it’s unusual for a creator to leave a show so early in its run, Williamson’s hectic life was taking its toll. After Dawson's Creek Season 2 ended, creator Kevin Williamson left the show. 1 Career 2 Trivia 3 Media 4 Notes and references Williamson's penchant for witty dialogue is evident in the irreverent '90s takes on the horror genre, Scream and I Know What You Did Last … For Entertainment Weekly‘s “The Art of Saying Goodbye” story, which ran in the April 11 issue, we interviewed the masterminds behind 10 iconic TV shows to learn how they crafted their series finales. Dawson's Creek ran for six seasons on The WB from 1998 to 2003. Dawson. ''Dawson's Creek'' will cut back on its scandalous plotlines Creator Kevin Williamson is leaving the show and so is the soap opera-style melodrama The morning after Dawson’s Creek premiered in January 1998, my friends and I—who were a year younger than the characters—sat in homeroom debating who was “the Joey” in our group (with all due respect to Jen). While celebrating the 20th anniversary of Dawson's Creek, creator Kevin Williamson shared his thoughts on what happened to Joey and Pacey after the finale with Entertainment Weekly. Maybe aspiring director Dawson will start shooting music videos. As the show heads into its second full season, the plan is to go back to its less melodramatic roots. It was that last bit of growth that pushed them into adulthood. "I wasn't thrilled with the way Andie left the show because I really loved that character when she first came on. In 2018, Dawson’s Creek creator Kevin Williamson explained why the writers had Jen die at the end of the story, telling The Hollywood Reporter, “Dealing with the death of one of their own was the final thing that thrust them into adulthood forever. Don't hold your breath for a 'Dawson's Creek' revival. He’d stepped away from the drama earlier in its run. We blended our stories. 1 on a few radio formats. Last we left off, Dawson had finally made peace with Joey and Pacey ending up together and was off working with his idol Steven Spielberg in Hollywood. Pacey. So I thought, it’s coming of age — what was the one thing they haven’t dealt with? ... Kevin Williamson, ... I’m so happy we did it." Kerr Smith, who played Jack McPhee on Dawson's Creek, made history by engaging in the first "passionate" on-screen kiss between two men on network television. ”It will definitely return to a first-season sensibility,” promises WB executive VP Jordan Levin. "It went away and my life was over. But the two didn’t agree on one element of Jack’s story. It was a two-hour finale, and when I wrote the second hour, that’s where I was headed. Everyone knows it’s gonna be Dawson and Joey.” When I finally shifted it to Pacey and Joey, people came out of the closet going, “Okay, I’m so glad that happened. [Laughs] I love that show. He is portrayed by Obi Ndefo. Greg and I wrote the coming-out storyline for [episodes] 214 and 215. The series creator Kevin Williamson even admitted to Entertainment Weekly to killing two birds with one stone when he made the choice to kill off Jen: I look back on it, and I feel like the second hour is so much tighter. Scream writer Kevin Williamson created the concept and penned many of the scripts, inspired by his own life. They were all excited to be down in little Wilmington, North Carolina, and it just felt special. The teen angst drama made stars of James Van Der Beek (Dawson), Katie Holmes (Joey), Josh Jackson (Pacey) and Michelle Williams (Jen). Kevin Williamson is a writer and executive producer for The Vampire Diaries. Spread the love with EW's Valentine's Day gift guide. That sounded right to him: If I had this big dream and I didn’t succeed, I would be very disappointed. That’s why we killed Jen … "It … And so because of all of this, Kevin Williamson, the creator of “Dawson’s Creek,” just like almost every other American citizen in 1998, heard it and I guess he liked it and asked my management if it could be part of this fledgling show he was creating. We always joked that Doug was gay, or at least Pacey did. I love that it has a life that has gone on and on beyond its initial run. Dawson’s Creek was a coming-of-age story and that was the idea behind that ending. Complex language, frank talk about mature topics, and the first gay kiss on television were among its lasting legacy. I said, “That would be the final coming-of-age story.”. I always get choked up a little when I think about it. And then I kept thinking, one thing I’ve learned in my life is that my soul mate isn’t necessarily my romantic love. It worked for me. I felt satisfied. ”But I’m never too far away.” Paul Stupin remains as exec producer, with Alex Gansa (”Maximum Bob”) and Tammy Ader (”Party of Five”) helping to fill the void left by Williamson. The hit WB teen drama Dawson’s Creek changed TV forever. "It went away and my life was over. … I was doing Cursed, that amazing, brilliant werewolf movie. Andy Mangels's From Scream to Dawson's Creek: An Unauthorized Take on the Phenomenal Career of Kevin Williamson (Los Angeles: Renaissance Books, 2000) (ISBN 1-58063-122-3) covers the show well but omits later seasons. I wrote the first hour, and then they had to start filming it while I was writing the second hour. "Originally, when Kevin [Williamson] and I started talking, it was pretty clear to both of us it would probably be she and Dawson," executive producer Paul Stupin said. In 2018, Dawson’s Creek creator Kevin Williamson explained why the writers had Jen die at the end of the story, telling The Hollywood Reporter, “Dealing with the death of one of their own was the final thing that thrust them into adulthood forever. What do you consider the gold standard of series finales? Spread the love with EW's Valentine's Day gift guide, who’d also worked with Williamson and Berlanti on. … Twitter sort of elevates everyone’s angst to some degree. Everyone’s got a blog. Here’s why Williamson is worried about a story in bold in particular. We were all hands on deck. It was even No. They dealt with first love, first sex, first everything, but they hadn’t dealt with the death of a core member of their group. Michelle Williams. Yep, once upon a time there was a real Dawson, a real Joey, a real Pacey and even a real-life Dawson’s Creek.. It’s all based on creator Kevin Williamson’s own teenage years. I was in Hollywood making movies. After Kevin Williamson’s script for Dawson's Creek was turned down by FOX, the aspiring showrunner was devastated. As for life without ”Dawson,” he expects some withdrawal. … There’s The Sopranos. How did Michelle react hearing of Jen’s death? © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. They so belong together.” I know it was a little polarizing; I thought it was gonna be extremely polarizing. I felt complete. Jen’s dead.” “Well, she’ll be in heaven narrating the whole story.” [Laughs] But ultimately, I don’t want to see it. He thought about that, and he made that decision. I’ve always regretted the first hour of the two-hour finale. ”I was starting to crash and burn,” he says. I’m being brought into someone else’s world, so I’m gonna go along for the ride. And you know what? Dawson's Creek turned 20 on Jan. 20, and after all these years, it seems like everyone — including series creator Kevin Williamson … Offers may be subject to change without notice. What was your experience like? And then we revealed that she chose her romantic love, which was Pacey. Josh Jackson. That’s how he saw it.” You know, he didn’t make that decision lightly. Jack Plunkett. On January 20, 1998, teenagers found a new small-screen obsession when Dawson's Creek made its debut. That was a nice little subplot and a way to round out Jack’s character. After Kevin Williamson’s script for Dawson's Creek was turned down by FOX, the aspiring showrunner was devastated. I look at every episode I ever do and go, “God, if I had one more week.” Which is probably the truth. Williamson is the creator of Dawson's Creek, CW fantasy drama The Vampire Diaries and the Scream film franchise. Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. What if we do a movie or something?” I’m like, “Well, then you’ll be a ghost.” [Laughs] Once we realized that we were gonna let her die, it freed us up to have all those scenes — that wonderful moment where Dawson is videotaping her video letter to her daughter, the moment with Grams [Mary Beth Peil] being there to witness her death. 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Writer 4.1 The Vampire Diaries … A less thorough book from about the same time, aimed at teens, is Meet the Stars of Dawson's Creek by Grace Catalano. "It went away and my life was over. Van der Beek: Marc Kayne, ''Dawson's Creek'' will cut back on its scandalous plotlines. Joey. We ran out of time. In terms of Vampire Diaries, you should call Julie Plec right now and ask her how it’s gonna end. Williamson agrees the show was getting ”too soapy,” something he says he never intended. After Kevin Williamson’s script for Dawson's Creek was turned down by FOX, the aspiring showrunner was devastated. They sat there by the pier and said, ‘You and me, always. And I thought what a beautiful way to let her be the catalyst for everyone’s turning events. I respect that. 'Dawson's Creek' Writers Reunion: Why Joey Didn't End Up With Dawson and 19 More Highlights. I also wanted Joey to finally make her decision between Pacey [played by Joshua Jackson] and Dawson [played by James Van Der Beek], and I thought what better thing to launch that life decision than the immediacy of a death. I wasn’t able to sleep, something was rubbing me the wrong way. All these kids knew 90210. But then the network had an idea: “Warner Bros. called Greg Berlanti up knowing we were friends and said, ‘See if you can talk Kevin into doing the finale.’ I went to lunch with Jordan [Levin], president of The WB, and they had the conceit: Why don’t we do five years in the future? That’s a part of the process now. Why don’t we just go there and make sure that it’s a happy ending? You’re forced to dig deeper and to truly figure out what your future’s gonna be. He spent his time making his own movies and idolising Steven Spielberg. So we were just sort of sitting there on set miserable, kinda just talking it out. Jen. Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. "It went away and my life was over. I remember having to call James and explain to him how I was gonna end the show, and he was just like, “You know, man, you gotta do what you think is gonna be right.” He was down with any decision. [Laughs] And so we thought, well, what if he really was? Creator Kevin Williamson says that despite talking about the idea constantly, there are currently no plans to revisit the iconic '90s teen drama. How did you decide Jen [Michelle Williams] was the one who would die? -Dawson and Joey’s kiss in the season one finale happened because Kevin wanted something different — he didn’t want to be every other show, where the … "It went away and my life was over. The entire series is now available for streaming on Netflix. Williamson says Dawson basically was him as a teen. Bodie Wells is a recurring character on Dawson's Creek. But at the ATX Television Festival's Dawson's Creek Writers Room Reunion panel on Saturday, June 6, it was revealed that was not the initial plan. '” He wrote a TV show, The Creek, about Dawson and Joey. The term “jumping the shark” comes from Happy Days employing a stunt that indicated the show overstayed its welcome.… Joey and I also shared the same collection of … this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. -Dawson and Joey’s kiss in the season one finale happened because Kevin wanted something different — he didn’t want to be every other show, where the whole show was about keeping them apart. [Laughs]. The series creator Kevin Williamson even admitted to Entertainment Weekly to killing two birds with one stone when he made the choice to … Creator Kevin Williamson is leaving the show and so is the soap opera-style melodrama. Things change, but I do know if we go with that ending — oh, I’m gonna start crying thinking about it. It was spawned out of something that happened in Greg’s childhood, and then I took it and it was sort of my family’s reaction. Yes, we did. After Kevin Williamson’s script for Dawson's Creek was turned down by FOX, the aspiring showrunner was devastated. 'Dawson's Creek' series finale: Kevin Williamson on saying goodbye. I think he really ultimately loved the idea that all of Dawson’s dreams came true in Hollywood. When I first wrote it, I was absolutely convinced it had to end with Dawson and Joey together. [Laughs] Because we’ve talked. While Dawson’s Creek became a teenage phenomenon when it aired from 1998 to 2003, Monroe has recently been involved in another cult series hooking young viewers: 13 Reasons Why on Netflix . And I had the most amazing fresh cast. Bodie is a smart, quick-witted and talented man, who works as a chef at various jobs before partnering with Gale Leery at Leery's Fresh Fish and settling in Capeside with his family. 'Dawson's Creek': Why James Van Der Beek Loves That Joey Ended Up With Pacey. Kevin Williamson still gets choked up over killing off Jen on 'Dawson's Creek'. Bodie is in a relationship with Bessie Potter and feels the effect of living in a small town, where endemic racism is … I just loved how it put Joey in a frame of mind where she had to finally stop running from her personal life and really face it head-on. I had a smile on my face because that was a damn good episode of television. And then when it turned into something special, it changed my life. ”It’s best I’m not part of it this year.”. We thought it was an appropriate reflection upon Jack. Dawson’s Creek changed the landscape of teen dramas when it premiered on the WB’s midseason lineup in 1998. Maggie Friedman, Greg — we were just trying to get it done. Kevin Williamson who co-produced and co-wrote the popular WB series has stated that Andie's departure from the series left a bad taste in his mouth. I argued that the honor should go to me since, like Katie Holmes who played Joey, I was brunette. He pulled from his own life for Kerr Smith’s character. … It was such an interesting response when I did it then: I didn’t realize how many people wanted Pacey and Joey together. Severely, why did Andie go away ‘Dawson’s Creek’? I love that there are so many people out there that would love to see a reunion. Fun fact for those who aren’t huge Dawson’s Creek and Scream fans, the series creator, Kevin Williamson, wrote the screenplay for three out … this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. Jack ended up taking custody of Jen’s daughter, and Doug finally came out so they could be a family. She was always the person who didn’t feel like she fit in. Jack Plunkett. They were like, ‘Let’s push ahead and show how everyone ended up.’ I thought about it, and I went, ‘Okay. The gay storyline was always really special to me, and to Greg. I look back on my entire career, and I look back at [Dawson’s Creek] as just the most special time of my life. Dawson was a very self-aware, movie-referencing smart aleck. Williamson told the publication in March 2018 that he had wanted Joey and Dawson to end up together in the series finale, and he took this into account when writing the final episode. Creator Kevin Williamson was joined by … Here you have little Joey Potter in New York: she’s seemingly on her way up the ladder professionally, but she’s with a guy, played by Jeremy Sisto, that’s probably wrong for her. 'Dawson's Creek' Writers Reunion: Why Joey Didn't End Up With Dawson and 19 More Highlights. Entertainment Weekly may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website.