Michelle Williams has many reasons to be glowing! The pregnant actress, 39, was awarded Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for her role in Fosse/Verdon at Golden Globes on Sunday, January 5,
“When you put this in someone’s hands, you’re acknowledging the choices that they make as an actor. Moment by moment, scene by scene, day by day. But you’re also acknowledging the choices they make as a person. The education they pursue, the training they sought, the hours they put in,” the Oscar-nominated star, who portrayed Gwen Verdon in the limited series, said during her acceptance speech. “I’m grateful for the acknowledgment of the choices I’ve made and also grateful to have lived at a moment in our society where choice exists.”
She continued: “As women and as girls things can happen to our bodies that are not our choice. I’ve tried my very best to live a life of my own making and not just a series of events that happened to me, but one that I could stand back and look at and recognize my handwriting all over it — sometimes messy and scrawling, sometimes careful and precise, but one that I have carved with my own hand. … I wouldn’t have been able to do this without employing a woman’s right to choose. To choose when to have my children and with whom. When I felt supported and able to balance our lives, knowing as all mothers know that the scales must and will tilt towards our children.”
The Blue Valentine star ended her speech with a shout out to her new fiancé and her daughter. “Tommy and Matilda, I can’t wait to come home to you,” she said.
On December 30, Us Weekly confirmed that Williams and Hamilton director Thomas Kail are engaged and expecting their first child together. The child will be the second for the Dawson’s Creek alum, who shared 14-year-old daughter Matilda with the late Heath Ledger.
The Tony winner was previously honored for her role in the FX hit series at the 2019 Emmy Awards. During her speech, she took the opportunity to stand up for equal pay between men and women.
“I see this as an acknowledgment of what is possible when a woman is trusted and feels safe enough to voice her needs and respected enough to be heard. When I asked for more dance classes, I heard, ‘Yes.’ Voice lessons, yes. A different wig. Fake teeth not made out of rubber, yes,” she said at the time. “All these things require effort and cost more money. But my bosses never presumed to know better than I did about what I needed in order to do my job and honor Gwen Verdon.”
Williams continued: “The next time a woman, especially a woman of color because she stands to make 52 cents on the dollar compared to her white male counterparts, tells you what she needs in order to do her job, listen to her, believe her because one day she might stand in front of you and say thank you for allowing her to succeed.”
The Montana native wrapped up her speech with a shout-out to Matilda, saying, “This is for you … like everything else.”
