James Van Der Beek Teamed Up With A Star Wars Actor For A Must-See Power Rangers Fan Film

February 11, 2026 brought the tragic news that "Varsity Blues" and "Dawson's Creek" star James Van Der Beek died following complications from colorectal cancer. Though primarily known as an actor, Van Der Beek left behind a few projects that he helped usher in as a writer as well. In addition to the 2017 Viceland comedy series "What Would Diplo Do?", which he also co-created and starred in, Van Der Beek also co-wrote and appeared in a 2015 short film set in the "Power Rangers" universe. Well, not officially — "Power/Rangers" is actually a fan film, with both Van Der Beek and "The Mandalorian" star Katee Sackhoff as the leads.

Joining the ranks of fan films that are better than big budget blockbusters, "Power/Rangers" made its modest budget shine thanks to the direction of Joseph Kahn. Kahn is famous for directing music videos for Taylor Swift, Imagine Dragons, and Eminem, to name a few, and his skill at telling a complete story within the confines of a limited runtime were put to excellent use here. 

Differing from the kid-friendly tone that is typical of an official "Power Rangers" product, "Power/Rangers" is unapologetic in its use of R-rated violence, profanity, and other adult themes. Van Der Beek stars as a new version of Red Ranger Rocky, and co-wrote the film alongside Kahn and Dutch Southern. Sackhoff is Kimberly, better known as the original Pink Ranger. 

"Power/Rangers" hit YouTube and Vimeo on February 23, 2015. Vimeo, in particular, put a lot of hype behind it, making it a Staff Pick and even interviewing Joseph Kahn about the film's release. But all of that attention quickly put it on the radar of Saban, the company that owns the rights to the "Power Rangers" IP. In short order, Saban ordered "Power/Rangers" to be taken off of both platforms due to copyright violation, and YouTube and Vimeo complied — for a brief period, anyway.

"Power/Rangers" has since been uploaded across multiple YouTube channels. As Kahn explained in his interview with Vimeo about the film's removal, it was ultimately determined that it fell under fair use as a parody. Surely, Saban is aware of subsequent uploads of the movie, and would have removed them if it were within the company's legal rights to do so. 

Meanwhile, 2017's "Power Rangers" bombed at the box office, so it's not as if Saban itself has done a better job of ushering the franchise into the world of film. But that's a whole other discussion entirely.