Michelle Williams Shares Heartfelt Dating Advice To Daughter After Heath Ledger's Death

In an interview with Vanity Fair, the Blue Valentine actress revealed how Heath inspired a piece of advice she holds dear, which she passed on to their teenage daughter, Matilda. Williams noted that she would often say, "Your dad loved me before anybody thought I was talented, or pretty, or had nice clothes." Telling her daughter not to settle, the star mom added that "If it doesn't feel like love, it's not love."

Per DailyMail, the late Dark Knight actor and Dawson's Creek actress dated for three years before calling it quits. They met on the set of 2005's Brokeback Mountain, and the romance took off after Heath helped Williams nurse an injury she sustained on set. The star had twisted an ankle while filming a scene and Heath stepped in to help her.

Brokeback Mountain screenwriter Diana Ossana once recalled the moment Heath and Williams connected. She noted that after the incident on set, Williams needed to go to the hospital, but Heath would not let her go alone. Ossana described the moment, stating, "I remember him looking at her, and she looking up at him with these wide eyes. She was almost startled by the attention he was giving her, but you could see it every day from thereon."

Ossana noted that for Heath, it was "love at first sight." In less than a year, Heath and Williams became an item and also announce that they would become parents. They welcomed their daughter in October 2005.

A few years into their relationship, things began to go downhill. The 10 Things I Hate About You actor and The Fablemans actress split up towards the end of 2007, and then, four months later, tragedy struck. Heath passed away in New York City in January 2008 due to an accidental overdose. Leading up to the heartbreaking news, the star had endured months of physical and mental exhaustion.

The star who died at 28, had an on-and-off struggle with drug use, and it worsened by the time he got immersed in the stress of work. Filming his iconic role in The Dark Knight was also a part of the stressful moments. Heath was getting very little sleep and soon started relying on a potpourri of medications. Two months before he passed away, he revealed in a New York Times interview that he could not stop thinking, and his body was "exhausted."

Once opening up about the aftermath of the actor's death, Williams noted that his passing left a "hole" that will never be filled. She stated that she wanted to be "respectful" of his absence without trying to fill up the void. Following his death, Williams and her daughter moved to upstate New York, as she took a break from her career.

Williams revealed that Matilda and she moved after Heath's death to give the youngster "a sane home environment." The teenager was two years old when her dad died. In the grand scheme of things, the 42-year-old mom wanted her daughter to have siblings that were close to her age, but that did not quite work out.

However, after eight years, Williams got her wish. This was when she married Hollywood executive Thomas Kail. The pair tied the knot in 2020 and welcome their first child together in the same year. Matilda got a second sibling in 2022.

Presently, Michelle has her hands full with raising two toddlers, and a teenager. Ultimately, the celebrity mom juggles motherhood with her acting career. Speaking with EW, the star explained how she made it all work for her. She noted that finding balance meant one would always have to adjust as the concept of balance "isn't a stable place."