Michelle Williams

Michelle Ingrid Williams (born September 9, 1980) is an American actress. Known for her roles in small-scale independent productions with dark or tragic themes, Williams is the recipient of several accolades, including two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and nominations for four Academy Awards, and a Tony Award. Daughter of the politician and trader Larry R. Williams, she was raised in Kalispell and San Diego. She began her career with television guest appearances and made her film debut in the family film Lassie in 1994. At 15, she gained emancipation from her parents, and soon achieved recognition for her leading role in the television teen drama series Dawson's Creek (1998–2003). This was followed by low-profile films, before having her breakthrough with the drama film Brokeback Mountain (2005), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Williams went on to gain 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). For the last two of these she received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, respectively. She won two Golden Globes for portraying Marilyn Monroe in the drama My Week with Marilyn (2011) and Gwen Verdon in the miniseries Fosse/Verdon (2019), in addition to a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead ...

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Synecdoche, New York (2008)

DepressingHeartbreakingEmotionalTear-jerker

A theater director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he attempts to create a life-size replica of New York inside a warehouse as part of his new play.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Charlie Kaufman
CAST:  Philip Seymour Hoffman  •  Samantha Morton  •  Jennifer Jason Leigh  •  Michelle Williams

A theater director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he attempts to create a life-size replica of New York inside a warehouse as part of his new play.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Charlie Kaufman
CAST:  Philip Seymour Hoffman  •  Samantha Morton  •  Jennifer Jason Leigh  •  Michelle Williams

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

RomanticBeautifulEmotionalOriginal

Rodeo cowboy Jack and ranch hand Ennis are hired as sheepherders in 1963 Wyoming. One night on Brokeback Mountain, they spark a physical relationship. Though Ennis marries his longtime sweetheart and Jack marries a fellow rodeo rider, they keep up their tortured, ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Ang Lee
CAST:  Heath Ledger  •  Jake Gyllenhaal  •  Randy Quaid  •  Michelle Williams

Rodeo cowboy Jack and ranch hand Ennis are hired as sheepherders in 1963 Wyoming. One night on Brokeback Mountain, they spark a physical relationship. Though Ennis marries his longtime sweetheart and Jack marries a fellow rodeo rider, they keep up their tortured, ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Ang Lee
CAST:  Heath Ledger  •  Jake Gyllenhaal  •  Randy Quaid  •  Michelle Williams

But I'm a Cheerleader (2000)

Megan is an all-American girl. A cheerleader. She has a boyfriend. But Megan doesn't like kissing her boyfriend very much. And she's pretty touchy with her cheerleader friends. Her conservative parents worry that she must be a lesbian and send her off to "sexual ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Jamie Babbit
CAST:  Natasha Lyonne  •  Brandt Wille  •  Bud Cort  •  Michelle Williams

Megan is an all-American girl. A cheerleader. She has a boyfriend. But Megan doesn't like kissing her boyfriend very much. And she's pretty touchy with her cheerleader friends. Her conservative parents worry that she must be a lesbian and send her off to "sexual ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Jamie Babbit
CAST:  Natasha Lyonne  •  Brandt Wille  •  Bud Cort  •  Michelle Williams

Dick (1999)

Two high school girls wander off during a class trip to the White House and meet President Richard Nixon. They become the official dog walkers for Nixon's dog Checkers, and become his secret advisors during the Watergate scandal.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Andrew Fleming
CAST:  Kirsten Dunst  •  Michelle Williams  •  Will Ferrell  •  Dan Hedaya

Two high school girls wander off during a class trip to the White House and meet President Richard Nixon. They become the official dog walkers for Nixon's dog Checkers, and become his secret advisors during the Watergate scandal.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Andrew Fleming
CAST:  Kirsten Dunst  •  Michelle Williams  •  Will Ferrell  •  Dan Hedaya

Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)

Two decades after surviving a massacre on October 31, 1978, former baby sitter Laurie Strode finds herself hunted by persistent knife-wielder Michael Myers. Laurie now lives in Northern California under an assumed name, where she works as the headmistress of a ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Steve Miner
CAST:  Jamie Lee Curtis  •  Josh Hartnett  •  Adam Arkin  •  Michelle Williams

Two decades after surviving a massacre on October 31, 1978, former baby sitter Laurie Strode finds herself hunted by persistent knife-wielder Michael Myers. Laurie now lives in Northern California under an assumed name, where she works as the headmistress of a ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Steve Miner
CAST:  Jamie Lee Curtis  •  Josh Hartnett  •  Adam Arkin  •  Michelle Williams

I'm Not There (2007)

Slow movingOriginalCleverDramatic

Six actors portray six personas of music legend Bob Dylan in scenes depicting various stages of his life, chronicling his rise from unknown folksinger to international icon and revealing how Dylan constantly reinvented himself.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Todd Haynes
CAST:  Cate Blanchett  •  Heath Ledger  •  Julianne Moore  •  Ben Whishaw

Six actors portray six personas of music legend Bob Dylan in scenes depicting various stages of his life, chronicling his rise from unknown folksinger to international icon and revealing how Dylan constantly reinvented himself.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Todd Haynes
CAST:  Cate Blanchett  •  Heath Ledger  •  Julianne Moore  •  Ben Whishaw

Imaginary Heroes (2004)

Matt Travis is good-looking, popular, and his school's best competitive swimmer, so everyone is shocked when he inexplicably commits suicide. As the following year unfolds, each member of his family struggles to recover from the tragedy with mixed results.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Dan Harris
CAST:  Sigourney Weaver  •  Jeff Daniels  •  Emile Hirsch  •  Michelle Williams

Matt Travis is good-looking, popular, and his school's best competitive swimmer, so everyone is shocked when he inexplicably commits suicide. As the following year unfolds, each member of his family struggles to recover from the tragedy with mixed results.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Dan Harris
CAST:  Sigourney Weaver  •  Jeff Daniels  •  Emile Hirsch  •  Michelle Williams

Me Without You (2001)

During a long, hot summer in seventies London, young neighbors Holly and Marina make a childhood pact to be friends forever. For Marina, troubled, fiercely independent, determined to try everything, Holly stays the only constant in a life of divorcing parents, ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Sandra Goldbacher
CAST:  Anna Friel  •  Michelle Williams  •  Trudie Styler  •  Allan Corduner

During a long, hot summer in seventies London, young neighbors Holly and Marina make a childhood pact to be friends forever. For Marina, troubled, fiercely independent, determined to try everything, Holly stays the only constant in a life of divorcing parents, ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Sandra Goldbacher
CAST:  Anna Friel  •  Michelle Williams  •  Trudie Styler  •  Allan Corduner

Species (1995)

In 1993, the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence Project receives a transmission detailing an alien DNA structure, along with instructions on how to splice it with human DNA. The result is Sil, a sensual but deadly creature who can change from a beautiful ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Roger Donaldson
CAST:  Natasha Henstridge  •  Ben Kingsley  •  Michael Madsen  •  Alfred Molina

In 1993, the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence Project receives a transmission detailing an alien DNA structure, along with instructions on how to splice it with human DNA. The result is Sil, a sensual but deadly creature who can change from a beautiful ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Roger Donaldson
CAST:  Natasha Henstridge  •  Ben Kingsley  •  Michael Madsen  •  Alfred Molina

The Baxter (2005)

A man with a "doormat" personality tries standing up for himself for a change in this comedy. Mild mannered tax accountant Elliot Sherman is what he calls a "Baxter": the kind of calm, unexciting fellow who "wears sock garters" and "enjoys raking leaves." Loved by ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Michael Showalter
CAST:  Michael Showalter  •  Elizabeth Banks  •  Michelle Williams  •  Justin Theroux

A man with a "doormat" personality tries standing up for himself for a change in this comedy. Mild mannered tax accountant Elliot Sherman is what he calls a "Baxter": the kind of calm, unexciting fellow who "wears sock garters" and "enjoys raking leaves." Loved by ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Michael Showalter
CAST:  Michael Showalter  •  Elizabeth Banks  •  Michelle Williams  •  Justin Theroux

The Hawk Is Dying (2007)

A Gainesville Florida auto upholsterer attempts to subvert his mundane life by training a wild, red-tailed hawk.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Julian Goldberger
CAST:  Paul Giamatti  •  Michelle Williams  •  Michael Pitt  •  Rusty Schwimmer

A Gainesville Florida auto upholsterer attempts to subvert his mundane life by training a wild, red-tailed hawk.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Julian Goldberger
CAST:  Paul Giamatti  •  Michelle Williams  •  Michael Pitt  •  Rusty Schwimmer

The Station Agent (2003)

Slow movingBeautiful

When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Tom McCarthy
CAST:  Peter Dinklage  •  Patricia Clarkson  •  Bobby Cannavale  •  Michelle Williams

When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Tom McCarthy
CAST:  Peter Dinklage  •  Patricia Clarkson  •  Bobby Cannavale  •  Michelle Williams

The United States of Leland (2003)

DepressingHeartbreakingEmotionalThought provoking

A withdrawn young man, Leland Fitzgerald is imprisoned for the murder of a mentally disabled boy, who also happened to be the brother of his girlfriend, Becky. As the community struggles to deal with the killing, Pearl Madison, a teacher at the prison, decides to ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Matthew Ryan Hoge
CAST:  Don Cheadle  •  Ryan Gosling  •  Chris Klein  •  Kevin Spacey

A withdrawn young man, Leland Fitzgerald is imprisoned for the murder of a mentally disabled boy, who also happened to be the brother of his girlfriend, Becky. As the community struggles to deal with the killing, Pearl Madison, a teacher at the prison, decides to ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Matthew Ryan Hoge
CAST:  Don Cheadle  •  Ryan Gosling  •  Chris Klein  •  Kevin Spacey

Land of Plenty (2004)

After living abroad, Lana returns to the United States, and finds that her uncle is a reclusive vagabond with psychic wounds from the Vietnam War.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Wim Wenders
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  John Diehl  •  Shaun Toub  •  Burt Young

After living abroad, Lana returns to the United States, and finds that her uncle is a reclusive vagabond with psychic wounds from the Vietnam War.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Wim Wenders
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  John Diehl  •  Shaun Toub  •  Burt Young

If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000)

The stories of three lesbian couples -- who live in the same house at different periods of time -- who are at a crossroads in their lives. In 1961, Edith loses her lover, Abby, to a stroke. Linda and Amy struggle with feminist issues in 1972. And, in 2000, Kal and ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Anne Heche  •  Martha Coolidge  •  Jane Anderson
CAST:  Vanessa Redgrave  •  Marian Seldes  •  Paul Giamatti  •  Elizabeth Perkins

The stories of three lesbian couples -- who live in the same house at different periods of time -- who are at a crossroads in their lives. In 1961, Edith loses her lover, Abby, to a stroke. Linda and Amy struggle with feminist issues in 1972. And, in 2000, Kal and ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Anne Heche  •  Martha Coolidge  •  Jane Anderson
CAST:  Vanessa Redgrave  •  Marian Seldes  •  Paul Giamatti  •  Elizabeth Perkins

A Hole in One (2004)

A gangster makes an employee pose as a doctor to prevent his troubled girlfriend from getting a lobotomy.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Richard Ledes
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  Meat Loaf  •  Tim Guinee  •  Louis Zorich

A gangster makes an employee pose as a doctor to prevent his troubled girlfriend from getting a lobotomy.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Richard Ledes
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  Meat Loaf  •  Tim Guinee  •  Louis Zorich

Letters to Jackie: Remembering President Kennedy (2013)

Revisits President John F. Kennedy's presidential legacy through 21 of the more than 800,000 condolence letters written to Jackie Kennedy after JFK's assassination. Based on a book by Ellen Fitzpatrick  (more)

DIRECTION:  Bill Couturié
CAST:  Anne Hathaway  •  Bérénice Bejo  •  Michelle Williams  •  Kirsten Dunst

Revisits President John F. Kennedy's presidential legacy through 21 of the more than 800,000 condolence letters written to Jackie Kennedy after JFK's assassination. Based on a book by Ellen Fitzpatrick  (more)

DIRECTION:  Bill Couturié
CAST:  Anne Hathaway  •  Bérénice Bejo  •  Michelle Williams  •  Kirsten Dunst

Suite Française (2015)

France, 1940. In the first days of occupation, beautiful Lucile Angellier is trapped in a stifled existence with her controlling mother-in-law as they both await news of her husband: a prisoner of war. Parisian refugees start to pour into their small town, soon ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Saul Dibb
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  Margot Robbie  •  Matthias Schoenaerts  •  Kristin Scott Thomas

France, 1940. In the first days of occupation, beautiful Lucile Angellier is trapped in a stifled existence with her controlling mother-in-law as they both await news of her husband: a prisoner of war. Parisian refugees start to pour into their small town, soon ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Saul Dibb
CAST:  Michelle Williams  •  Margot Robbie  •  Matthias Schoenaerts  •  Kristin Scott Thomas

Ben Lee: Catch My Disease (2012)

Charming, intelligent and iconoclastic, Ben Lee is an Australian singer-songwriter whose creative growth since his early adolescence has undergone almost relentless media scrutiny. This is a playful yet deeply intimate portrait of Lee, exploring his meteoric rise ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Amiel Courtin-Wilson
CAST:  Ben Lee  •  Anita Caplan  •  Suzie Q. Chamberlain  •  Claire Danes

Charming, intelligent and iconoclastic, Ben Lee is an Australian singer-songwriter whose creative growth since his early adolescence has undergone almost relentless media scrutiny. This is a playful yet deeply intimate portrait of Lee, exploring his meteoric rise ...  (more)

DIRECTION:  Amiel Courtin-Wilson
CAST:  Ben Lee  •  Anita Caplan  •  Suzie Q. Chamberlain  •  Claire Danes

Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches of evil.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Sam Raimi
CAST:  James Franco  •  Mila Kunis  •  Rachel Weisz  •  Michelle Williams

Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches of evil.  (more)

DIRECTION:  Sam Raimi
CAST:  James Franco  •  Mila Kunis  •  Rachel Weisz  •  Michelle Williams
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