Biography
In the beginning, there was Joshua Jackson. Meaning that the beginning didn't start until June 11, 1978 when Joshua Carter Jackson came into this world in Vancouver, British Columbia. His childhood was spent in California, and he lived the first eight years of his life there. Joshua had five years as an only child until his young her sister Aisleigh was born. It wasn't until 1984 that Joshua moved back to Canada with his family. He was known as a "high strung" young child, energetic and a lover of the limelight.
But his childhood wasn't always happy. When he was a child, his parents divorced. This seemed to have affected Joshua, but it also reinforced his ties with his Mom, Fiona, and his sister. He claims to be very close to them, and as a result, makes him more comfortable with women. He even took his younger sister on her first trip to buy a bra. The closeness he shares with his female relatives is a trait he shares with Pacey, the character he plays on Dawson's Creek. "Pacey is closer to his mother and sisters, but his sisters are off at school. Because of his family dynamic, Pacey is much more comfortable with women. I was raised among females; it was just me, my mom and my sister, and I'm more comfortable being around women because of that, too."
The parallels between Joshua and Pacey seem to go deeper than that. Joshua claims that he hasn't been acting, he's just being himself when he plays Pacey. "It's fun being a little bit goofy and I'm like that in real life anyway. I was that guy at fifteen, and I am that guy now. I haven't been acting for the past six months; I've just been showing up and being myself. We're exactly the same." He also compares himself to his character and the experiences that Pacey goes through. "Four years ago, I had similar issues to what Pacey is dealing with. We both grew up in a community based atmosphere. He grew up in a much smaller town, which has it's own benefits, but I grew up in a community where I knew everybody in the neighborhood, went to school with all the same kids, and spent a decade of my life with the same people." He can easily relate to the monotony of a small town and the conflict that Pacey has with his community.
But they aren't usually this serious. Both Joshua and the character Pacey are known to be practical jokers. Josh compares his humor with Pacey's when he says, "I enjoy laughing, having a good time, and often get myself in trouble for it. But neither one of us is mischievous for mischief's sake."
But even before Pacey and Dawson's Creek, Joshua Jackson was a kid living in Canada. His mother was a casting director which gave Josh his first taste of acting. Since he was already very energetic, he pestered his mother into allowing him to audition. After a while, she allowed him, hoping that he would get turned down, so he would be discouraged from acting. Unfortunately for her, Joshua got the part. That led to being an extra on McGuyver, which lead to his first movie, Crooked Hearts (1991), where he played the young Peter Berg. All of this landed him his breakthrough role, as young Charlie Conway, a prodigy in the Disney movie, The Mighty Ducks. As he grew older he budgeted his time between movies and school, turning out Andre, Digger, Magic In the Water, Ronnie and Julie and of course D2 and D3, sequels to The Mighty Ducks. When he was in school, he was a practical joker and a prankster. He even was kicked out of school twice, once for lack of attendance and once for behavior. In the end, he ended up taking his G.E.D. This doesn't make him any less intelligent, however. He reads John Locke and would love to go to college someday. He has often talked about entering some sort of higher education and likes English and Philosophy.
After his G.E.D. test, Joshua took some time off and traveled around Europe and visiting his family. He is part Irish on his mother's side.
When he returned to Los Angeles, Joshua ended up going to an audition for Dawson's Creek. He originally tried out for the roll of Dawson and then they switched him to Pacey. This led Josh finally to Wilmington, North Carolina, where Dawson's Creek is filmed. For the first season Josh shared an apartment with James Van Der Beek and his dog, Shumba. With Dawson's Creek taking up his time now, Josh is busy filming the show. Hopefully this is just the beginning of a long and distinguished career in Hollywood.
Filmography
