Photo: Gregg DeGuire/GettyMichelle Williamssays she “learned a lot” from playingSteven Spielberg’s mother in the upcoming filmThe Fablemans.AtThe Fabelmanspremiere Sunday at AFI Fest in Hollywood, California, Williams told PEOPLE that playing the character Mitzi Fabelman —loosely based on Spielberg’s own mother, Leah, was “a great place to live” as an actor.“Myself, I’m a little quieter, I’m a lot shyer,” the 42-year-old actress said. “And so, to live as this person for this period of time was really… I learned a lot, and I hope I take a little bit of that love of life with me.“Williams emphasized that her and the cast of the movie — which also includes Gabriel LaBelle, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett and Julia Butters — “love each other a lot” after making such a personal film with 75-year-old Spielberg.“Every time that we’re sort of brought back together and we get to see each other again, it’s like coming home,” she told PEOPLE.“I think seeing how connected [Spielberg] is to his childhood is really inspiring, that that’s a place that he continues to draw from,” Williams added about working with Spielberg.In May, WilliamstoldVarietyaboutbeing asked to play a character based on Spielberg’s late momin the semi-autobiographical project.Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic"We were sitting around the house in COVID, with one day looking a lot like the next, and my phone beeped and I had a message that Steven wanted to talk to me,” she said. “I couldn’t comprehend that he might want to work with me. I thought he had a question or something. Then he got on the Zoom and told me that he wanted me to play this person, his mama.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.She added of the movie, “It’s funny, it’s sad, it’s kind of everything. It’s the muchness of life. We’re trying to reflect all of that.“Last Wednesday, Spielberg toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat his parents had been “nagging” him to put them on the big screen prior to their deaths.“They were actually nagging me, ‘When are you going to tell that story about our family, Steve?’ And so this was something they were very enthusiastic about,” he said.He also shared what finally prompted him to makeThe Fabelmans: “I started seriously thinking, if I had to make one movie I haven’t made yet, something that I really want to do on a very personally atomic level, what would that be? And there was only one story I really wanted to tell.“Steven Spielberg (far right) with his parents in 1989.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via GettySpielberg’s mom Leah died in 2017 at 97 and his dad Arnolddied in 2020 at 103.Spielberg — known for classics likeE.T., Jaws, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s Listand many more — saidThe Fabelmansis “the first coming-of-age story I’ve ever told.““My life with my mom and dad taught me a lesson, which I hope this film in a small way imparts,” he toldTHR. “Which is, when does a young person in a family start to see his parents as human beings? In my case, because of what happened between the ages of 7 and 18, I started to appreciate my mom and dad not as parents but as real people.“The Fabelmansis in select theaters Nov. 11. It opens nationwide this Thanksgiving.
Photo: Gregg DeGuire/Getty
Michelle Williamssays she “learned a lot” from playingSteven Spielberg’s mother in the upcoming filmThe Fablemans.AtThe Fabelmanspremiere Sunday at AFI Fest in Hollywood, California, Williams told PEOPLE that playing the character Mitzi Fabelman —loosely based on Spielberg’s own mother, Leah, was “a great place to live” as an actor.“Myself, I’m a little quieter, I’m a lot shyer,” the 42-year-old actress said. “And so, to live as this person for this period of time was really… I learned a lot, and I hope I take a little bit of that love of life with me.“Williams emphasized that her and the cast of the movie — which also includes Gabriel LaBelle, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett and Julia Butters — “love each other a lot” after making such a personal film with 75-year-old Spielberg.“Every time that we’re sort of brought back together and we get to see each other again, it’s like coming home,” she told PEOPLE.“I think seeing how connected [Spielberg] is to his childhood is really inspiring, that that’s a place that he continues to draw from,” Williams added about working with Spielberg.In May, WilliamstoldVarietyaboutbeing asked to play a character based on Spielberg’s late momin the semi-autobiographical project.Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic"We were sitting around the house in COVID, with one day looking a lot like the next, and my phone beeped and I had a message that Steven wanted to talk to me,” she said. “I couldn’t comprehend that he might want to work with me. I thought he had a question or something. Then he got on the Zoom and told me that he wanted me to play this person, his mama.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.She added of the movie, “It’s funny, it’s sad, it’s kind of everything. It’s the muchness of life. We’re trying to reflect all of that.“Last Wednesday, Spielberg toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat his parents had been “nagging” him to put them on the big screen prior to their deaths.“They were actually nagging me, ‘When are you going to tell that story about our family, Steve?’ And so this was something they were very enthusiastic about,” he said.He also shared what finally prompted him to makeThe Fabelmans: “I started seriously thinking, if I had to make one movie I haven’t made yet, something that I really want to do on a very personally atomic level, what would that be? And there was only one story I really wanted to tell.“Steven Spielberg (far right) with his parents in 1989.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via GettySpielberg’s mom Leah died in 2017 at 97 and his dad Arnolddied in 2020 at 103.Spielberg — known for classics likeE.T., Jaws, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s Listand many more — saidThe Fabelmansis “the first coming-of-age story I’ve ever told.““My life with my mom and dad taught me a lesson, which I hope this film in a small way imparts,” he toldTHR. “Which is, when does a young person in a family start to see his parents as human beings? In my case, because of what happened between the ages of 7 and 18, I started to appreciate my mom and dad not as parents but as real people.“The Fabelmansis in select theaters Nov. 11. It opens nationwide this Thanksgiving.
Michelle Williamssays she “learned a lot” from playingSteven Spielberg’s mother in the upcoming filmThe Fablemans.
AtThe Fabelmanspremiere Sunday at AFI Fest in Hollywood, California, Williams told PEOPLE that playing the character Mitzi Fabelman —loosely based on Spielberg’s own mother, Leah, was “a great place to live” as an actor.
“Myself, I’m a little quieter, I’m a lot shyer,” the 42-year-old actress said. “And so, to live as this person for this period of time was really… I learned a lot, and I hope I take a little bit of that love of life with me.”
Williams emphasized that her and the cast of the movie — which also includes Gabriel LaBelle, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett and Julia Butters — “love each other a lot” after making such a personal film with 75-year-old Spielberg.
“Every time that we’re sort of brought back together and we get to see each other again, it’s like coming home,” she told PEOPLE.
“I think seeing how connected [Spielberg] is to his childhood is really inspiring, that that’s a place that he continues to draw from,” Williams added about working with Spielberg.
In May, WilliamstoldVarietyaboutbeing asked to play a character based on Spielberg’s late momin the semi-autobiographical project.
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
“We were sitting around the house in COVID, with one day looking a lot like the next, and my phone beeped and I had a message that Steven wanted to talk to me,” she said. “I couldn’t comprehend that he might want to work with me. I thought he had a question or something. Then he got on the Zoom and told me that he wanted me to play this person, his mama.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
She added of the movie, “It’s funny, it’s sad, it’s kind of everything. It’s the muchness of life. We’re trying to reflect all of that.”
Last Wednesday, Spielberg toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat his parents had been “nagging” him to put them on the big screen prior to their deaths.
“They were actually nagging me, ‘When are you going to tell that story about our family, Steve?’ And so this was something they were very enthusiastic about,” he said.
He also shared what finally prompted him to makeThe Fabelmans: “I started seriously thinking, if I had to make one movie I haven’t made yet, something that I really want to do on a very personally atomic level, what would that be? And there was only one story I really wanted to tell.”
Steven Spielberg (far right) with his parents in 1989.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty
Spielberg’s mom Leah died in 2017 at 97 and his dad Arnolddied in 2020 at 103.
Spielberg — known for classics likeE.T., Jaws, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s Listand many more — saidThe Fabelmansis “the first coming-of-age story I’ve ever told.”
“My life with my mom and dad taught me a lesson, which I hope this film in a small way imparts,” he toldTHR. “Which is, when does a young person in a family start to see his parents as human beings? In my case, because of what happened between the ages of 7 and 18, I started to appreciate my mom and dad not as parents but as real people.”
The Fabelmansis in select theaters Nov. 11. It opens nationwide this Thanksgiving.
source: people.com
