I was a heartthrob in a massive 90s TV show – now I have a ‘normal job’ running an art gallery
A NINETIES telly heartthrob has shunned the spotlight in a huge career switch.
The TV favourite - who starred in a hugely popular teen drama running from 1998 to 2003 - now has a very normal job as the owner and gallerist at an art establishment in America.
Actor Mark Matkevich, 45, played bad boy Drue Valentine in 17 episodes of Dawson's Creek.
The series followed the lives of a group of best friends who were students at Capeside High School.
The Pennsylvania screen star's character was seen kissing Joey in the show's fourth season but a relationship never materialised.
In typical bad-boy style, he had been suspended from school after being framed for a prank.
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After securing fame on the show, which ran for six seasons, he bagged a role in TV series Joan of Arcadia, movie Sweet Home Alabama and TV series Ed.
Mark then switched career direction completely to open his own gallery in his home state.
Axiom Contemporary, in Philadelphia, was founded in 2011.
It sells an array of artwork and books, as well as playing host to a series of fairs.
He told how it was a family tragedy which saw his change in direction.
In a chat with affordableartfair.com, he said: "When I turned 30, my father became terminally ill and with that came a lot of self-reflection.
"Being an actor is unlike any other profession; you are the salesman and the product.
"Despite a modicum of success, it was becoming less and less fulfilling to me and I just couldn’t see myself sustaining it my entire life as a career.
"I wanted to find something that would challenge me to learn something new, and grow as a person. I wanted to get to work, and bring passion and focus to a new practice. I wanted to move my energy around in a different way, and felt like I owed it to myself."
He added: "The art business found me really. When I decided to leave the acting world, I was basically open to anything new, anything that made me feel inspired and motivated.
"I walked into an art gallery in Los Angeles, where I’d lived for 15 years, and fell in love with contemporary art."
Previously, Dawson's Creek fans spoke out after feeling they had been "fooled" for 25 years.
The drama remains available on multiple streaming services over the past two decades including ITV and Netflix.
Dawson's Creek viewers slammed the series after a dedicated fan exposed the special effects put in place by show bosses.
Fans stated how their 'day was ruined' after they clocked that artificial snow in the Christmas episode Merry Mayhem was, in reality, a white blanket.
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Two decades later, show fans have blamed the advancement of technology and 4k television for revealing the truth.
Some followers have also speculated the cast is "cursed", with the cast suffering everything from tragic deaths to marriage break-ups.
