Biography
Though she worked consistently throughout the 1990s, Kimberly Williams made her biggest impression on movie audiences as the sweet ingenue in the remake of
Father of the Bride (1991). Raised in New York, Williams began acting in commercials as a teenager. During her second year at Northwestern University, Williams got her feature film break when she was cast as protective father
Steve Martin's soon-to-be-married daughter Annie in the (slightly) modernized version of the popular 1950s comedy
Father of the Bride. Though the movie became a hit, Williams chose to finish college rather than head immediately to Hollywood, appearing only in the gentle nostalgia piece
Indian Summer (1993) before she earned her degree. After school, Williams reunited with screen parents Martin and
Diane Keaton to play the now-expectant mother Annie in the genial sequel
Father of the Bride II (1995). Moving beyond gentle, crowd-pleasing comedy, Williams co-starred with TV heartthrob Jason Priestly in the hit man black comedy
Coldblooded (1995); played
Emilio Estevez's sister in the Vietnam drama
The War at Home (1996); and appeared in the TV version of the
Neil Simon play
Jake's Women (1995). Williams' doe-eyed earnestness also won over a cadre of fans when she was cast as the female lead in the
Edward Zwick-Marshall Herskovitz series Relativity in 1996, but the critically acclaimed show lasted only one season. Along with acting in Broadway and off-Broadway plays in the late '90s, Williams also played the young
Sharon Stone in the film version of
Sam Shepard's
Simpatico (1999); joined the ensemble cast of the romantic comedy
Just a Little Harmless Sex (1999); and starred as a contemporary young woman transported to fairy tale land in the splashy NBC miniseries
The 10th Kingdom (2000). ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide