Joshua Jackson shares secret behind viral Dawson's Creek basketball scene
Joshua Jackson has revealed exactly how a now-viral scene of Dawson's Creek was shot.
Last month, a sequence showing the actor's character Pacey Witter on the late '90s teen drama series being hit in the face with a basketball by Dawson Leery (James Van Der Beek) started trending on Twitter.
Soon after, fans began to question exactly how the moment was shot, with some even arguing that it was computer-generated imagery (CGI).
But during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday, Joshua detailed the secret to the painful-looking scene.
"(The ball) hit the camera after it hit my face. And (producers) loved it so much that they think that we did two or three more takes is my recollection," he explained. "Somebody had some issues they were trying to work out... This was just a beach ball painted to look like a basketball that got bounced off my face."
Host Jimmy then asked Joshua if it hurt when the ball hit him during each take.
"I mean it didn't feel great," the 44-year-old laughed.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Joshua recalled how he feared he must have done something "terrible" when he first learned he was trending on Twitter.
Accordingly, he was thankful to find out it was merely in regards to a Dawson's Creek scene.
"Twitter has its ups and downs, but one of the things I love about Twitter is man, people get into it," the star smiled. "So, when I finally got back to my trailer, I realised I hadn't screwed up and I wasn't dead. My career wasn't over. All good things. There's (just) like a forensic analysis of this 25-year-old TV show."
Joshua is currently promoting the upcoming miniseries Fatal Attraction. The show will premiere via Paramount+ on 30 April.
