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We, the audience for the popular arts, live in a remarkable time. Most generations had no Michelle Williamses. But us? We get two. Abundance and glory!
There is, of course, the Michelle Williams best known for singing — a one-time member of the multi-platinum group Destiny’s Child, several successful solo albums, and a robust musical theater career that includes a current run on Broadway in Death Becomes Her.
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Then, there’s the Michelle Williams who’s a five-time Academy Award nominee for Brokeback Mountain, Blue Valentine, My Life With Marilyn, Manchester by the Sea, and The Fabelmans. (It’s an honor just to be nominated, of course, but that last one especially really should have been her win, if we may take a moment to editorialize!)
While the two Williamses are also around the same age, they, of course, look nothing alike. Nevertheless, there have been some moments of confusion over the years. Indeed, even Williams’ mother (the Dawson’s Creek alum’s mother, not the “Say My Name” singer’s mother) has made the mistake.
“Yeah, I’ve gotten mail for her. She’s gotten mail for me. We’ve been mistaken for each other on lists of people showing up places,” Williams (the actress) said with a chuckle on Entertainment Weekly‘s The Awardist podcast, then spoke of a recent incident that almost caused a familial hubbub.
“[The other] Michelle Williams had said that she didn’t like the socks and underwear that her mother got her for Christmas,” she dished. “And my mom was really upset with me that I didn’t like the socks and underwear that she’d gotten me for Christmas.”
Luckily, this was soon sorted out, and no lasting damage was done. (Who is whispering back to Michelle’s mom that she even found out about this in the first place?!?)
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Williams also said there have been times recently when she’s been out and about and “people say to me, ‘Aren’t you going to be late for curtain?’ And I was like, ‘I am not late for curtain'” — thinking she’s supposed to be on Broadway performing in Death Becomes Her.
Speaking of Broadway, however, it was only recently that the two women finally met for the first time, when Williams went to see Williams in that musical version of the 1992 movie.
“It was truly the first time,” the two performers ever met, she said.
Amusingly, the two found time for a little backstage schtick on Instagram regarding mismatched autograph requests.
Michelle Williams is currently up for two Emmy awards for the FX on Hulu series Dying for Sex, as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and as a producer for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series. The show, based on a true story, explores a woman’s journey of libidinal discovery after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis.
You can (and should!) check out more from Williams’ appearance on The Awardist below.
