Inside Michelle Williams' life from 30-year-old Baywatch throwback to 'sobbing' over bittersweet Heath Ledger moment

Michelle Williams is a household name who has worked since her teenage years, although many fans may not be too familiar with her life away from the cameras.

Dying For Sex has arrived, with the eight-part comedy-drama coming out on Friday, 4th April, on Disney+, with Williams behind the heart of the show, Molly Kochan.

Based on the award-winning podcast of the same name, Dying For Sex is the true story of Molly whose terminal cancer diagnosis pushes her to find out more about what she wants sexually, leaving her husband of 15 years in the process.

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Joined by It Ends With Us star Jenny Slate and Bad Monkey actor Rob Delaney, Williams showcases the reality of living with a terminal illness, but what is there to know about the star herself?

Emancipation

Having grown up in rural Kalispell, Montana, Williams moved with stay at home mum Carla and commodities trader dad Larry to San Diego when she was nine-years-old.

With a strong desire to become an actress, having already started working with minor roles as a youngster, she legally emancipated from her parents, with their approval, so she could work adult hours in Los Angeles.

According to The Guardian, the actress moved to Burbank, California, at just 15 on her own but “the emancipation from parental oversight appears to have stretched a little further than formality.

“Supper was always pizza – as was breakfast, and lunch. She didn’t see a dentist for a decade.”

She also hinted at the darker side of Hollywood, commenting: “There are some really disgusting people in the …and I met some of them.”

Baywatch

Williams’ first ever onscreen role was in 1993 when she took on the minor role of Bridget Bowers in the iconic Baywatch.

The youngster was just 14 at the time but made a lasting impression as it didn’t take long before she landed a role in the 1994 film Lassie, Home Improvement, Species and Halloween H20: 20 Years Later in 1998.

It was in this same year that Williams rose to international fame as Jen Lindley in the unforgettable drama alongside Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and Chad Michael Murray.

Heath Ledger

The star has been in an abundance of films throughout her career so far, including Blue Valentine, My Week With Marilyn, Manchester By The Sea and The Greatest Showman.

Arguably her best known role was as Alma, the wife of ’s Ennis in Brokeback Mountain in 2005.

Talking of Ledger, she shared in the documentary I Am Heath Ledger: “I remember the first day on set, I was blown away.

“I just felt an incredible connection very quickly. So intense that it was sort of, quite shocking.”

The stars dated for three years, welcoming their daughter Matilda Rose Ledger in October 2005.

Unfortunately, their romance wasn’t to be as they parted ways due to his “lifestyle”.

A source commented at the time: "He [Ledger] liked to go out, he was a known user of drugs, he used cocaine.

“He had a lifestyle that really wasn't — at least in Michelle Williams's eyes — compatible with raising a child and continuing in that relationship.”

Life after Heath Ledger

Williams has previously opened up about life without Ledger in both hers and their daughter’s lives.

She candidly remarked: “In all honesty, for pretty much everything else, I feel like I’m a believer in not fighting circumstances, accepting where you are and where you’ve been.

“In pretty much all senses but one, I would be able to go totally down that line of thinking were it not for Matilda not having her dad.

“You know, that’s just something that doesn’t…I mean, it just won’t ever be right.”

For Porter magazine, Williams continued to open up about the moment that she knew her family would be alright: “I watched [Matilda] warm in the sun, in her swimsuit, get on her bicycle and smile and wave as she rode off to go meet her friends.

“I went back into the house and sobbed because of this incredibly simple moment ― common everyday happiness.

“I really felt like in that moment, like wow, we’ve done it. Not only are we OK, she’s happy. Life has brought us to a place that’s not just surviving, but thriving.”

Williams has been married to her husband and award-winning theatre director Thomas Kail since 2020.

What’s next

Even though Dying For Sex has just been released, Williams already has something else in the works.

She is currently working on Fever, a biopic about the professional and personal life of singer songwriter Peggy Lee whose career spanned nearly seven decades, coming out with hits such as Is That All There Is and Somebody Else Is Taking My Place.

There is no official release date as of yet with Fever still in development, according to her IMDb page.

Dying For Sex is available to watch on Disney+.