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Born in Kalispell, Montana, she is
the eldest of the five children of Larry Williams, a renowned commodities
trader, and Carla Williams, a homemaker. She also has a half sister named
Sara Williams, who is the vice principal of Loma Vista Elementary School,
in Brentwood, California. When she was nine, her family moved to San
Diego, California. At an early age, Williams took interest in acting. With
her parents' disapproval, at age fifteen Williams emancipated herself from
her parents and graduated from high school, in order to pursue her acting
career.
Williams' father is a noted stock and commodities trader and had taught
her about trading. In 1997 at age 16 she won the Robbins World Cup Trading
Championship, the same as her father won in 1987. She turned $10,000 into
$110,000 over the course of a year and that gain (as of 2006) is the
fourth highest in the competition (her father's being the highest).
Williams' career began in television, appearing in programs such as the
90's version of Lassie, Baywatch and Home Improvement. Williams' first
film role was in the motion picture Species. Soon after, she won
additional roles, including the Jessica Lange-Michelle Pfeiffer film A
Thousand Acres and the 1998 movie Halloween: H20. However, it was in 1998
when Williams was cast as Jen Lindley on the hit WB show Dawson's Creek,
that helped to put her on the map.
During and after the show's six season run, Williams made strong turns in
several notable indie films. Her first starring role was as Arlene in the
film Dick, a satire of the Watergate scandal, opposite Kirsten Dunst. She
starred opposite Christina Ricci in Prozac Nation, and also appeared in
the HBO film If These Walls Could Talk 2, and several acclaimed indie
pictures such as The United States of Leland, Me Without You and Imaginary
Heroes with Sigourney Weaver. For her performance in The Station Agent,
Williams along with the rest of the cast received a Screen Actors Guild
award nomination for Best Acting Ensemble. It was in 2005 when critics and
audiences took note of Williams' performance in Ang Lee's Brokeback
Mountain. For her performance, she won a Critic's Choice Award and
received Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award nominations for Best
Supporting Actress.
Since then, Williams has quickly gained employment in several highly
anticipated films. Later in 2006, she appeared in the drama The Hawk is
Dying, with Paul Giamatti. She recently wrapped The Hottest State opposite
Ethan Hawke. She also completed filming on a Bob Dylan biopic titled I'm
Not There by director Todd Haynes, which also features Cate Blanchett,
Julianne Moore, and Heath Ledger, and is signed to film projects with
directors Woody Allen, Charlie Kaufman and Spike Jonze.
Williams was engaged to Australian actor Heath Ledger and gave birth to
their daughter, Matilda Rose Ledger, on October 28, 2005. The child's
godfather is Jake Gyllenhaal and her godmother is Busy Philipps,
Michelle's co-star on Dawson's Creek. The couple met on the set of the
film, Brokeback Mountain, in which they played husband and wife. During
their time together they lived in Brooklyn, New York. On September 2,
2007, . People.com reported that Williams and Ledger, after a
three-year-relationship, had decided to split.
On September 4, 2007, Michelle Williams' father Larry confirmed to Sydney
Daily Telegraph that Ledger & Williams have indeed split. |
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Brontë (2008) ... Charlotte
Brontë
Synecdoche, New York (2007)
Where the Wild Things Are (2008) (voice)
Incendiary (2008) .... Young Mother
The Tourist (2007)
I'm Not There (2007) .... Coco Rivington
The Hottest State (2006) .... Samantha
The Hawk Is Dying (2006) .... Betty
Brokeback Mountain (2005) .... Alma
The Baxter (2005) .... Cecil Mills
Land of Plenty (2004) .... Lana
Imaginary Heroes (2004) .... Penny Travis
A Hole in One (2004) .... Anna Watson
"Dawson's Creek" .... Jen Lindley / ... (128 episodes, 1998-2003)
- All Good Things... (2003) TV Episode .... Jen Lindley
- ...Must Come to an End (2003) TV Episode .... Jen Lindley
- Joey Potter and Capeside Redemption (2003) TV Episode .... Jen
Lindley
- Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road (2003) TV Episode .... Jen Lindley
- Catch-22 (2003) TV Episode .... Jen Lindley
(123 more)
The Station Agent (2003) .... Emily
... aka The Station Manager (UK)
The United States of Leland (2003) .... Julie Pollard
Prozac Nation (2001) .... Ruby
Me Without You (2001) .... Holly
Perfume (2001) .... Halley
... aka Dress to Kill (USA: video title)
If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000) (TV) .... Linda (segment "1972")
But I'm a Cheerleader (1999) .... Kimberly
Dick (1999) .... Arlene Lorenzo
... aka Dick, les coulisses de la présidence (France)
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) .... Molly Cartwell
... aka Halloween: H20 (USA: promotional title)
... aka Halloween: H20 (20 Years Later) (USA: promotional title)
A Thousand Acres (1997) .... Pammy
Killing Mr. Griffin (1997) (TV) .... Maya
... aka Killing Griffin (USA: video title)
My Son Is Innocent (1996) (TV) .... Donna
Timemaster (1995) .... Annie
Species (1995) .... Young Sil
"Home Improvement" .... Jessica Lutz (1 episode, 1995)
- Wilson's Girlfriend (1995) TV Episode .... Jessica Lutz
"Raising Caines" (1995) TV Series .... Trish Caines
"Step by Step" .... J.J. (1 episode, 1994)
- Something Wild (1994) TV Episode .... J.J.
Lassie (1994) .... April Porter
"Baywatch" .... Bridget Bowers (1 episode, 1993)
... aka Baywatch Hawaii (USA: new title)
- Race Against Time: Part 1 (1993) TV Episode .... Bridget Bowers |
