This Underrated James Van Der Beek Dark Comedy Is Streaming For Free

On February 11, 2026, the world was saddened to learn about the death of James Van Der Beek at the young age of 48. The actor rose to fame playing heartthrobs on "Dawson's Creek" (one of the best teen TV shows of all time) and in "Varsity Blues," but there was much more to his arsenal than popular teen fare. This brings us to Roger Avary's "The Rules of Attraction," a 2002 dark comedy in which he plays the young brother of "American Psycho" character Patrick Bateman — and it's currently streaming on Tubi, Pluto TV, Hoopla, Kanopy, and Prime Video for free.

Based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name, "The Rules of Attraction" explores the darker side of college life. Van Der Beek's character, Sean, isn't a vicious serial killer like his older sibling, but he is a drug dealer with a similar lack of empathy for other people. The story centers around Sean's romantic pursuit of the virgin Lauryn (Shannyn Sossamon), who misses her long-distance boyfriend. Meanwhile, Paul (Ian Somerhalder) is a gay student with eyes for Sean, leading to an icy love triangle.

Most of the characters in "The Rules of Attraction" are spoiled and borderline sociopathic. Even though Ellis wrote the novel in the '80s, the movie perfectly fit the mood of the early 2000s' post-"Cruel Intentions" climate. By no means is it one of the best comedies of the 2000s, but it is deliciously bratty and misanthropic, as Ellis' stories tend to be, making it perfect viewing for one's inner teenage edgelord. More importantly, it allowed Van Der Beek to play against type.

"Dawson's Creek" and "Varsity Blues" were the roles James Van Der Beek was most synonymous with when "The Rules of Attraction" came out. Both properties see him play relatively inoffensive characters, so his role in Roger Avary's movie marked a significant departure from his goody-two-shoes image. The film also came out while "Dawson's Creek" was still on the air, so Van Der Beek found playing Sean Bateman somewhat therapeutic. As he told Yahoo in 2017:

"That was the first time where I felt like a role was not a role that I was playing, but more like an exorcism. I was playing another character at the time who was incredibly sweet and sensitive, and there was no room for that kind of venom or anger. All of a sudden, there was this outlet for it. It was like an out-of-body experience, a lot of that movie."

Despite viewing "The Rules of Attraction" as an "exorcism," the project led to Van Der Beek having to confront some demons. In the same interview, he revealed that he went to therapy afterward, as getting into the frame of mind to play Sean brought up some negative feelings that were difficult to overcome. Be that as it may, the actor delivers a terrific performance in the film, and it's well worth seeking out on Prime Video, Hoopla, Kanopy, Pluto TV, or Tubi.