Michelle Williams
Biography
Michelle Ingrid Williams (born September 9, 1980) is an American actress. Known primarily for starring in small-scale independent films with dark or tragic themes, she has received various accolades, including three Golden Globe Awards, two Actor Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for five Academy Awards, four BAFTA Awards and a Tony Award. Williams, daughter of politician and trader Larry R. Williams, began her career with television guest appearances and made her film debut in the family film Lassie in 1994. She gained emancipation from her parents at age fifteen, and soon achieved recognition for her leading role as Jen Lindley in the teen drama television series Dawson's Creek (1998–2003). This was followed by low-profile films, before having her breakthrough with the drama film Brokeback Mountain (2005), which earned Williams her first Academy Award nomination. Williams received critical acclaim for playing emotionally troubled women coping with loss or loneliness in the independent dramas Wendy and Lucy (2008), Blue Valentine (2010), and Manchester by the Sea (2016). She has won three Golden Globes: for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in the drama My Week with Marilyn (2011), Gwen Verdon in the miniseries Fosse/Verdon (2019), and a woman with terminal cancer in the miniseries Dying for Sex (2025), as well as a Primetime Emmy Award for Fosse/Verdon. Her highest-grossing releases came with the thriller Shutter Island (2010), the fantasy film Oz the Great and Powerful (2013), the musical The Greatest Showman (2017), and the superhero films Venom (2018) and Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021). Williams has also led major studio films, such as Ridley Scott's thriller All the Money in the World (2017) and Steven Spielberg's drama The Fabelmans (2022). On Broadway, Williams starred in revivals of the musical Cabaret in 2014 and the drama Blackbird in 2016, for which she received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. She is an advocate for equal pay in the workplace. Consistently private about her personal life, Williams has a daughter from her relationship with actor Heath Ledger and was briefly married to musician Phil Elverum. She has three children with her second husband, theater director Thomas Kail. Description above from the Wikipedia article Michelle Williams (actress), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
The Graham Norton Show
2007
The View
1997
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
Golden Globe Awards
1944
Home Improvement
1991
Dawson's Creek
1998
Filmography
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
as Self - Guest · 2009
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
· 2015
The Kelly Clarkson Show
as Self · 2019
The Graham Norton Show
as Self · 2007
The View
as Self · 1997
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
as Self · 2003
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
as Self - Guest · 1988
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
· 1992
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
as Self · 2003
Golden Globe Awards
as Self - Nominee · 1944
Home Improvement
as Jessica Lutz · 1991
Dawson's Creek
as Jen Lindley · 1998
Baywatch
· 1989
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
as Self - Guest · 2009
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
as Self · 2014
MTV Video Music Awards
as Self · 1984
Step by Step
as J.J. · 1991
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
as Self · 2015
Shutter Island
as Dolores · 2010
Cougar Town
as Laurie's Foster Sister · 2009
The Oscars
as Self · 1953
Venom
as Anne Weying · 2018
The Greatest Showman
as Charity Barnum · 2017
Brokeback Mountain
as Alma Beers · 2005
Dying for Sex
as Molly Kochan · 2025
Venom: Let There Be Carnage
as Anne Weying · 2021
Manchester by the Sea
as Randi Chandler · 2016
Oz the Great and Powerful
as Annie / Glinda · 2013
The Fabelmans
as Mitzi Fabelman · 2022
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
as Molly · 1998
I Feel Pretty
as Avery LeClair · 2018
Off Script with The Hollywood Reporter
as Self · 2023
All the Money in the World
as Gail Harris · 2017
Blue Valentine
as Cindy · 2010
Species
as Young Sil · 1995
Fosse/Verdon
as Gwen Verdon · 2019
But I'm a Cheerleader
as Kimberly · 2000
My Week with Marilyn
as Marilyn Monroe · 2011
Synecdoche, New York
as Claire Keen · 2008
The Station Agent
as Emily · 2003
After the Wedding
as Isabel · 2019
I'm Not There
as Coco Rivington · 2007
The Emmy Awards
as Self · 1949
Showing Up
as Lizzy · 2023
The United States of Leland
as Julie Pollard · 2003
Suite Française
as Lucille Angellier · 2015
Certain Women
as Gina · 2016
E! True Hollywood Story
as Self (archive footage) · 1996
Deception
as S · 2008
Sacrifice
Meek's Cutoff
as Emily Tetherow · 2011
Lassie
as April Porter · 1994
A Thousand Acres
as Pammy · 1997
Dick
as Arlene Lorenzo · 1999
Wendy and Lucy
as Wendy Carroll · 2008
Land of Plenty
as Lana · 2004
If These Walls Could Talk 2
as Linda · 2000
Take This Waltz
as Margot · 2011
Wonderstruck
as Elaine · 2017
The Hottest State
as Samantha · 2007
Prozac Nation
as Ruby · 2003
Incendiary
as Young Mother · 2008
Perfume
as Halley · 2001
The Baxter
as Cecil Mills · 2005
The Hawk Is Dying
as Betty · 2007
Imaginary Heroes
as Penny Travis · 2004
Mammoth
as Ellen Vidales · 2009
My Son Is Innocent
as Donna · 1996
The Fabelmans: A Family in Film
as Self · 2023
Me Without You
as Holly · 2001
My Journey in Oz
as Self · 2013
Deep Sky
as Narrator (voice) · 2023
A Place in Hell
· 2027
Nice Fish
Killing Mr. Griffin
as Maya · 1997
A Hole in One
as Anna Watson · 2004
Heath Ledger: A Tribute
as Self · 2009
Ben Lee: Catch My Disease
as Self · 2012
Evel Knievel on Tour
That Click
as Self · 2019
Project X
as Narrator 2 (voice) · 2016
Timemaster
as Annie · 1995
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe: A Life on Screen
as Self (archive footage)