These days, Katie Holmes' name likely calls to mind her high-profile relationships (including one marriage), or possibly her daughter with Tom Cruise. But Katie earned her fame through multiple seasons of 'Dawson's Creek' back in the late '90s.
After that, Katie was a television and film sweetheart, and her run continued until she ran up against the brick wall that was her ex-husband's fame. Though Katie appeared to take care to protect her net worth during and after her marriage, Tom's blockbuster resume often outshined hers.
And yet, there are still fans who obsess over how great Katie is, and not just how impressive her acting chops are. In fact, one Reddit discussion on how good-looking the actress is brought up an interesting point about the way she found fame.
Fans Liked Joey Potter's Looks, But Was That All?
To be fair, a group of Redditors first began discussing Katie Holmes because they were talking about how good she looked on TV. While that's not exactly the most intellectual of conversations to have about the star, a lot of viewers shared the opinion that Katie only got more gorgeous as her time as Joey went on.
But it turns out that conversation also led to speculation about how Katie Holmes became the focal point of the TV series, though that may have not been the intent from day one. Whether it was up to Katie's looks or her acting ability, or maybe another factor entirely, is up for debate.
One Detail Suggests Katie Wasn't The Show's Original Star
That one telltale piece of evidence that Katie Holmes wasn't meant to be the 'Dawson's Creek' sweetheart? Fans say that in early episodes of the show, Katie Holmes' credits appeared after another actor's.
One fan pointed out that Jen, played by Michelle Williams, was intended to be the star of the show. Sure, think fans who grew to love Katie on 'Dawson's Creek' and feel like she embodies the entire series, but how so?
The fan stated that "you can clearly see it in opening titles": Dawson himself received first credit, so James Van der Beek's name was listed first. But next, at least, in the first season, Michelle Williams' name was listed second.
Fans will recall that Jen, the "New York City transplant," originally featured a bit more heavily in the series. But by season two, Katie Holmes' name appeared after James', because "Joey was so good that Jen had to stand back," fans suggest.
In fact, Katie was originally billed fourth, so it really looked like she ascended the list over time. Fans consider this a credit to her acting chops, because Joey became super-popular, leading to the WB using Katie in tons of their promos, fans noted.
And though not everyone was thrilled with the finale of the show, at least they can keep watching Katie in all the projects that came up for her afterward.
