The Stunning Transformation Of Kimberly Williams-Paisley

You may know Kimberly Williams-Paisley for her long-lasting marriage with country music star Brad Paisley. Or you may know the actor for some of her iconic roles in "Father of the Bride," "Nashville," and "According to Jim." These days, she is still busy with acting projects and family life, as well as charitable work. As she told Southern Living, she's grateful to have so much going on. "It's all something I want to be doing. That's such a luxury, that my life is busy with stuff that I've chosen to do. It's amazing," she said. 

But she didn't become the successful and busy woman she is today simply overnight. There were many steps along the way for her to transform into the well-respected actor, mother, author, and philanthropist she is today. From her early days growing up in a close-knit family to the launch of her acting career, to the unexpected way she met and fell in love with Brad Paisley, she's had quite the journey. 

Kimberly Williams-Paisley was born to her parents Linda Williams and Gurney Williams in 1971. She grew up with her two siblings, Jay and Ashley Williams, in Rye, New York, a coastal city located outside of New York City. Kimberly is the oldest of the siblings and seems close to both. She shared a photo of the three returning from music camp as young children, exclaiming, "I miss my siblings!" in the caption. 

Both the Williams sisters grew up to become actors; you've likely seen her younger sister Ashley in her many Hallmark films like "Northern Lights of Christmas," "Christmas in the City," "October Kiss," and "Love on a Limb." You may also recognize her from her role as Victoria in the popular sitcom "How I Met Your Mother." Ashley has also started working behind the cameras directing. In 2020, Kimberly made a Facebook post with several photos of herself and her sister congratulating her for the work she'd done as a writer and director and wishing her a happy birthday. Kimberly made it clear how close the two were growing up and remain today, writing in the caption, "Oh how I love her and the person she's grown up to be ... Ash, you are the stud to my dud, the caff to my decaf, the alcohol in my wine." 

While studying drama at Northwestern University, Kimberly Williams-Paisley had the opportunity of a lifetime, landing a breakout role in the 1991 film "Father of the Bride." In the movie, which has become a classic, Williams-Paisley plays Annie Banks, the oldest daughter and bride-to-be. Not only was it a momentous occasion to get a starring role in a big film, but the young actor was also working alongside legends like Steve Martin, who played her father, and Diane Keaton, who played her mother. 

Over 500 women auditioned for the role, which she won and gained her stardom through. Speaking about getting the part during a 1991 interview with Bobbie Wygant, she said, "I didn't really think I was right for it actually because I'm 20 years old, and a lot of people tell me that I look younger than 20, and this was for the part of a 22-year-old." She added that this may have worked to her advantage because she wasn't very stressed during the audition and thought it would be a fun experience. The 20-year-old actor had no way of knowing that she would land the part and that it would define her career for decades to come. 

After her breakout role in "Father of the Bride," Kimberly Williams-Paisley went on to finish obtaining her drama degree and acted in several more projects like "Father of the Bride Part II," "Safe House," and "Relativity." Her next big career-defining role came in 2001, playing Dana on "According to Jim." The ABC sitcom centers around the antics of suburban father Jim Belushi and how his wife Cheryl (played by Courtney Thorne-Smith) deals with them. Williams-Paisley's character is Cheryl's sister — a role many people still recognize her for. 

She was on the show for seven seasons and rejoined the cast for the final episode in 2009. Years later, she shared a throwback photo of the cast on her Facebook page and reminisced about her fond memories with them. "We used to gather at Courtney's house with our spouses and she would make us something delicious to eat. Court taught me a lot about hosting, though I never quite mastered it the way she did. There were times that this cast was the MOST FUN group to play with," Williams-Paisley wrote. Just like Williams-Paisley, her costar Courtney Thorne-Smith lives a different life today than she did during the show. 

Kimberly Williams-Paisley met her now-husband, country star Brad Paisley, in 2001. Audiences got a chance to see the couple together when she starred in his music video. The pair act alongside each other in the comical video to his song "I'm Gonna Miss Her," in which the couple disagree over Brad's prioritization of fishing over their relationship. While the lighthearted video shows a bickering couple, the relationship between the two celebrities seems to be much more loving in real life. 

While visiting "Good Morning America," Kimberly described the start of their relationship by joking that Brad had stalked her. Brad first laid eyes on her, as many others did, when he went to see "Father of the Bride" in theaters. In an earlier interview on "The Meredith Vieira Show,"  Kimberly explained that Brad had seen her movie with his ex-girlfriend. "They broke up, didn't work out, and seven years later — he swears it had never happened before — he woke up one day and decided he wanted to call me." After that call, the pair started dating and have been together ever since. 

Kimberly Williams-Paisley became famous for her role playing a bride in "Father of the Bride," but the idea of actually getting married was far from her mind at the time. However, it became much more real after meeting "Whiskey Lullaby" singer Brad Paisley. The pair became engaged quickly after they started dating, and they married in 2003. They had a beautiful wedding surrounded by friends and family. Williams-Paisley wore a beautiful Monique Lhuillier gown for the ceremony, and a second Mark Zunino for the reception. The celebration ended with Paisely singing the comical song "Toilet Seat Down" before the couple left. 

In 2023, Kimberly shared an Instagram post celebrating two decades of marriage. "This is 20 years. Oh the places we've been! Happy anniversary [Brad Paisley]. It ain't perfect but it's us and I am so grateful," she wrote in the caption. The slideshow show accompanying the caption showed sweet photos as well as comical moments between the celebrity couple. Kimberly told People that not taking themselves too seriously has been one of the keys to their successful marriage. "We record the meaningful moments, the best laughs. That's a big part of our relationship—focusing on the laughter and keeping a sense of play," she said. 

Four years after their wedding, Brad Paisley and Kimberly Williams-Paisley welcomed their first son, William "Huck" Huckleberry Paisley, into the world. Two years later, in 2009, Kimberly gave birth to another boy, Jasper Warren. Parenthood completely changed the couple's life.

"It changes your beliefs in almost [everything]; it just shakes you to your core," Brad told The Boot. Kimberly appears to love motherhood and truly values any time she can spend with her children. "I don't want to look back on this when I've complained for years about not having time for certain things, like fishing with my kids and hiking in the woods. We're trying to do that as much as we can," she told People.

kimberlywilliamspaisley / Instagram

In 2022, Kimberly shared a throwback photo of herself in a hospital gown wearing headphones, about to give birth to her first son. In the photo, she has a large baby bump and looks visibly tired from hours of labor. Still, she looked back on the moment fondly. In the caption, she wrote, "February 22nd, 2007. Here I am, trying to get Huck to want to come out, after my water broke 24+ hours earlier, just like in the movies. ...  In this pic, I didn't know yet how much he'd make us laugh, how gorgeous and interesting his art would be, how brave and kind his heart is. Happy 15th birthday Huck!! We love you so!!"

If you missed her early work, you may know Kimberly Williams-Paisley best for her time on "Nashville." In the ABC drama, which is centered around the fictional lives and dramas of country music stars, the real-life wife of one of America's biggest country singers plays recurring character Peggy Samper. She began the role in 2012 and was excited to be part of the cast, though she admitted it took her time to learn about Southern culture before she could play the "Nashville" character.

"I grew up in New York where everybody sort of tells it like it is.... [In a place like Nashville, there's a lot of] 'Bless your heart' and Southern charm... sort of glossing over the truth sometimes. I have an appreciation for the charm and the kindness here, but I've also learned that people don't always say what they're thinking," she told Entertainment Weekly. 

That said, years of living with a country star and adjusting to family life in Tennessee seem to have prepared her for the challenge. Although the series was all about country music, Williams-Paisley stuck to acting, leaving the singing to the other actors. Williams-Paisley left the show after Season 2 in 2013, but the popular series continued for six seasons, ending in 2018.

Shortly after her mother's death, Kimberly Williams-Paisley published the book "Where the Light Gets In." In it, she opened up about her and her family's journey with her mother's health. Her mother, Linda, was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of dementia that affects the part of the brain used to communicate. Williams-Paisley shared that some of the first signs appeared when she told her mother she was engaged and got minimal reaction. She thought this was strange but was able to explain it away at the time.

"We are such a close family and I was the first kid to get engaged and I thought, 'That's what it is,'" she told People. Symptoms continued to manifest, like at her wedding when her mother struggled to read a passage from the bible. A couple years later, Linda was diagnosed. 

The actor published her book so other families could take comfort and learn from her story. In the memoir, she puts an emphasis not only on how the disease affects her mother but also on how the entire family learned to cope. "It's important for families to emphasize and vocalize the need for members to not try to do all the caregiving on their own. It's important for caregivers to reach out and ask for help," Williams-Paisley explained (via Brain & Life). 

In 2024, Kimberly Williams-Paisley opened up to fans about a health issue she'd been struggling with for a couple of years. She shared a selfie to her Instagram showing her lying in bed in a hospital gown. In the caption, she explained that after losing her voice on stage a few years ago, it had never fully come back. She discovered it was due to damage to her laryngeal nerve. While losing her voice was a frightening experience for the actor, she was happy to have gotten to the bottom of it. "I lost my voice on stage at my Alzheimer's event in Nashville. It was embarrassing & scary & it never quite came back. It's been a challenging couple of years," she wrote in the caption. She continued, explaining, "I tried everything I could to heal it. ... I was finally able to have surgery this week at [Vanderbilt Health] with expert surgeons, & it is sounding so much better!!"

Fans were quick to react to the update, and Williams-Paisley was overwhelmed by support in the comments. In a post shared a couple of days later, she thanked her fans. "You reminded me of the power of authenticity, vulnerability, and hope," she wrote. "I'm feeling validated and seen and ever more grateful." She added later in the caption that her recovery was going well. 

At the beginning of 2020, Kimberly Williams-Paisley and her husband Brad Paisley launched The Store, a non-profit in partnership with Belmont University. The Store is a community food program dedicated to battling hunger. The idea for The Store was inspired after volunteering with their children. "We've got to get them into service and get them out of their bubble, and help them understand that there are hungry people in the world," Kimberly recalled thinking (via The Store). After volunteering with her sons at Unity Shoppe, a free California supermarket, she and Brad were driven to open a similar market in their home state of Tennessee. 

Unlike many food pantries, which offer limited meal options, The Store allows shoppers to pick from a selection of meats, fresh produce, and other food staples in the same way you would shop at a standard grocery store. Because The Store opened at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, they had to make some changes, such as offering delivery and pick-up options, but they remained dedicated to their vision.

Speaking about the program to Southern Living, Kimberly said, "People are really excited about this concept of dignity around food insecurity because so many people don't feel comfortable when they have to ask for help. I take for granted that I can go and pick out what I'd like and what my family needs. We want to give people that short-term solution as they are trying to get back on their feet."

Kimberly Williams-Paisley may have grown up in New York, but she's come to love her life in the country. The actor, Brad Paisley, and their two sons, William and Jasper, have settled in Franklin, Tennessee. Although the Southern town has become home, it took the New Yorker time to adjust to the slow pace of her new city. Speaking to Southern Living, she said, "People drive by and actually stop their cars, roll down the windows, and have a conversation in the middle of the street here. I remember thinking, 'Why are we talking right now? Don't we both have to go places?' But now, I understand that this is just what we do in the South."

Between her acting work and her husband's music career, the couple is often busy. But, at home, they live a simpler life with their family and many pets. She said they've collected quite a few animals over time. "I never thought we would have a donkey, but we do! ... We adopted him; he's a rescue donkey," she said." The family also has two rescue dogs and a bearded dragon (a type of lizard). 

Williams-Paisley's life in the country may be different than what she was originally used to, but she confirmed to Southern Living, "Tennessee feels like home."