Katie Holmes details ‘unexpected’ reunion with Joshua Jackson 25 years after dating

Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson are reveling in their reunion as much as fans are.

For the last few months, the former Dawson’s Creek co-stars have gone viral again and again, as they have been filming their first project together in 25 years, a new movie written and directed by the Alone Together actress, in New York City.

Now, they are giving insight into their “unexpected” dynamic, and how it has changed — and hasn’t — in the last quarter century.

Speaking with Variety, Katie confessed: “To be honest, it was unexpected” about the fan reaction to her reuniting with Joshua. “I know we were on a show that a lot of people watched, but I guess we never fully realized the impact. It still kind of throws all of us.”

Happy Hours, intended to be the first of a trilogy, two high school sweethearts who serendipitously cross paths years later in New York City, Liz, a freshly divorced photographer, and Andrew, a travel writer who broke her heart as a teen.

Recalling when she first thought Joshua might be the right guy to play Andrew opposite her Liz, Katie remembered asking him: “Is this even a potential? Is this something you’d want to do?”

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“We hadn’t worked together in 25 years, and we’ve changed a lot,” she noted, adding: “We also wanted to give ourselves the space to show different sides of ourselves and to not portray these people we’re known for,” referring to their Dawson’s Creek characters Joey and Pacey.

But though it had been 25 years, and they were certainly not in Dawson’s Creek anymore, Katie added that being on set together uncovered “a shorthand that we quickly realize still exists.”

“We’ve always done well working off one another. He directs me and I direct him without us even mentioning it,” she said.

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“It’s important to tell love stories that take place in many different chapters of a person’s life,” she further shared of her concept for the film, which just premiered at the TriBeCa Film Festival. “You’re allowed to fall in love in middle age. I think that’s a little underrepresented [in media].”

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Taking to Instagram when first confirming news of the project in July 2025, Katie wrote: “I am so very grateful to be working again with so many of my wonderful friends on this film HAPPY HOURS,” noting: “And working with Josh after so many years is a testament to friendship.”

“HAPPY HOURS is a love story that includes so many people I adore. We can’t wait for everyone to see what we make,” she continued, adding all the other stars that have joined the project, including Constance Wu, Mary-Louise Parker, Joe Tippett, John McGinty, Donald Webber Jr., Nathan Darrow, Johnna Dias-Watson and Jack Martin.