Michelle Williams is good at many things (making us cry, that voice she did in âI Feel Pretty,â teasing us with the prospect of a âDawsonâs Creekâ reunion), but sheâs a master of keeping the public out of her private life.
In a Vanity Fair profile published Thursday, the actress spoke candidly for the first time about her new relationship, revealing that she recently tied the knot with musician Phil Elverum of Mt. Eerie and the Microphones.
The two secretly wed during an intimate ceremony with a few friends and family (best friend Busy Philipps didnât Instagram Story the occasion, but she had to be there) in the Adirondacks. Both of the coupleâs children from previous relationships were in attendance.
The Oscar-nominated actress has a 12-year-old daughter, Matilda, with the late Heath Ledger. Elverum is dad to a 3-year-old from his marriage to GeneviÚve Castrée, who died of cancer 18 months after welcoming the child.
âObviously Iâve never once in my life talked about a relationship, but Phil isnât anyone else,â Williams told Vanity Fair. âAnd thatâs worth something. Ultimately the way he loves me is the way I want to live my life on the whole. I work to be free inside of the moment. I parent to let Matilda feel free to be herself, and I am finally loved by someone who makes me feel free.â
She said she was hesitant to disclose her âvery sacred and very specialâ relationship with Elverum, but ultimately decided to open up to âtake some heat and confusionâ out of the situation.
The couple now resides together in Brooklyn, New York with their daughters.
This new chapter of her life has allowed her to reflect on her romance with Ledger, who died in 2008 due to an accidental overdose. Williams said that over the last decade, sheâs been searching for the âradical acceptanceâ she found in her relationship with the actor.
âI never gave up on love,â she said of her life after Ledgerâs death. âI always say to Matilda, âYour dad loved me before anybody thought I was talented, or pretty, or had nice clothes.â
Williams said back in 2016 that she felt âreally sensitiveâ about dating after Ledgerâs death and was focused on giving Matilda the most normal life as single mother.
And while disclosing personal details isnât exactly natural for the famously reclusive star, she hopes that her story might be of service to someone else in the midst of a tragedy.
âI donât really want to talk about any of it,â she told Vanity Fair. âBut thereâs that tease, that lure, thatâs like, âWhat if this helps somebody? What if somebody who has always journeyed in this way, who has struggled as much as I struggled, and looked as much as I looked, finds something that helps them?â Donât settle. Donât settle for something that feels like a prison, or is hard, or hurts you,â she says. âIf it doesnât feel like love, itâs not love.â
To read Williamsâ full profile, head over to Vanity Fair.