Scream, Dawson's Creek Creator Kevin Williamson Comes to ATX TV Festival

The cast of Dawson's Creek. Kevin Williamson, creator of the revolutionary teen soap, will be part of this year's ATX TV Festival. (Image Courtesy of Outerbanks Entertainment/Warner Bros.)

Why have one legendary showrunner at your festival when you can have two? Last week, ATX TV Festival announced TV legend David E. Kelley as winner of the inaugural Showrunner Award. Now Dawson’s Creek creator Kevin Williamson gets his own career retrospective at the fest (May 29-June 1).

Expect a few guests when Williamson looks back on a career that launched not one but two horror franchises (Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer) not to mention a slate of shows including Tell Me a Story, Stalker, and an upcoming revamp of Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window. In addition, he'll also be sitting down with his old The Vampire Diaries co-creator, Julie Plec, in conversation with Universal Television’s SVP of Drama Development Kate Hoenigsberg to discuss their new shows, The Waterfront and We Were Liars.

Founded in 2012 as the ATX Television Festival by Caitlin McFarland and Emily Gipson as a summer camp for TV viewers and professionals, the festival became part of the Penske Media portfolio in 2022. Gipson and McFarland stayed in charge, but this year's festival marks its return to its independent and independently-owned roots. That doesn't mean that ATX has lost its Rolodex (look it up, kids), and the roster remains as stuffed as always, with even more panels added today:

• A conversation with co-creator/co-showrunner Lang Fisher and star Kerri Kenney-Silver about their Netflix hit The Four Seasons.

• Fisher and Kenney-Silver pull double-duty as part of Funny AF alongside Oscar Nuñez (The Office, The Paper) and Mekki Leeper (St. Denis Medical).

• A look at Clean Slate with co-star/co-creator/executive producer George Wallace, co-creator/co-showrunner/executive producer Dan Ewen, co-showrunner/executive producer Simran Baidwan, and non-writing executive producer Brent Miller.

But the fest is not just about hot new shows and hobnobbing with celebrities. ATX TV has always been about exploring the behind-the-scenes reality of TV, including the enigmas of the casting process which will be highlighted in two panels. First, Collaborative Casting, presented by the Casting Society of America, brings together casting executive Steven O’Neill (EVP, Casting and Talent Development, UCP), and casting directors Debby Romano (Shrinking) and Felicia Fasano (Better Things) to explore how their roles mesh. Then Casting a Spotlight: Unsung Actors will feature actors Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones) and John Ales (Painkiller) alongside casting directors Sherry Thomas (The Righteous Gemstones), Felicia Fasano (Better Things), and Bonnie Zane (Suits LA) to discuss the kind of performers who may not be household names but can be the secret ingredient for a great ensemble.

This is all on top of previously announced programming including first looks at the King of the Hill revival, and Max's Duster, a look behind the scenes of Late Night With Seth Meyers, an extra-special Mad Men retrospective with Jon Hamm and John Slattery, and much more.

ATX TV Festival 2025 will run May 29-June 1. Passes are available at atxfestival.com.