Getty; Everett Fun fact:Entertainment Weeklyhad a surprising impact onDawson's Creek. While series starJames Van Der Beekhas previously spoken about how his season 1 haircut was based onBrad Pitt, he's now sharing that the inspiration photo given to the hairdresser actually came from an issue of EW's magazine. While speaking at an ATX TV Festival panel honoring the legendary career ofDawson's CreekcreatorKevin Williamsonon Friday, Van Der Beek recalled the story about how he had to get a haircut before taking on the role of teen filmmaker Dawson Leery. And that's when he revealed which version of Pitt inspired his last-minute late '90s haircut. Entertainment Weekly "We ran all over town [trying to get a haircut], and Kevin's assistant said, 'I got an appointment at my hairdresser,'" Van Der Beek told the panel's audience in Austin of the fiasco. "And I meet his assistant [at the salon], and there was anEntertainment Weeklywith a picture ofBrad Pitt inTheDevil's Own,and we're like, 'Alright, give him that.'" he said of his character. "So that became the Dawson season 1 haircut." The actor laughed as he mocked what his hair looked like before that pivotal haircut. "I looked like pubescent Jesus," he said. "It was long." Van Der Beek, who opened up about hisongoing colorectal cancer battlein December, previously shared that he won't let his six children (whom he shares with wife Kimberly Brook) watchDawson's Creek. "I do not [let them watch]," he said. "It's a great show, I love the show, I think other kids can watch it. I don't think my kids need to watch their dad pretend to go through puberty. That's my stance on it." However, the actor still appreciates the beloved teen drama. "It was a very well-intentioned show, people really trying to do the right thing and speaking incredibly eloquently about how they were trying to do the right thing," Van Der Beek said. "I think that seed of good intentions comes through." Dawson's Creekpremiered on The WB in 1998, and ran through 2003. Along with Van Der Beek, the show also launched the careers of starsKatie Holmes,Michelle Williams,Busy Philipps, andJoshua Jackson. Entertainment Weekly Sign up forEntertainment Weekly'sfree daily newsletterto get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. In 2018,EW reunited the cast and crew of the series for a 20th anniversarycover story, with Williams offering her perspective on why the project resonated with viewers. "I loved that we were able to get in there in those formative years for people," she said at the time. "That's why people, I think, are so connected to it. When something affects you while you were growing up, it kind of stays in there forever. When you're so permeable and open and trying to figure out who you are and what's going on, whatever reaches you in those moments really becomes part of you." —Additional reporting by Samantha Highfill Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly