Biography
An American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, and actress. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal involving nude photographs caused her to relinquish her title early. Williams rebounded by launching a career as an entertainer, earning Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award nominations.
Williams released her debut album The Right Stuff in 1988, which spawned the hits "The Right Stuff," a #1 on Hot Dance Songs, and "Dreamin'," a #1 on R&B and #8 on Billboard Hot 100. Her second studio album, The Comfort Zone, in 1991 topped the Billboard R&B Album Chart, and spawned the number-one hit, "Save the Best for Last."
In 1994 she debuted on Broadway in the musical Kiss of the Spider Woman. In 1995 she recorded the Oscar-winner for Best Original Song, "Colors of the Wind," from the Disney animated feature film Pocahontas. It went on to reach #4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Williams's first major movie role was as the star of the feature film Eraser in 1996. She also starred in the movies Soul Food, Dance with Me, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, Shaft and Johnson Family Vacation.
From 2006 to 2010 she played the role of self-absorbed diva and former supermodel Wilhelmina Slater in the ABC comedy series Ugly Betty. In 2009, Williams released her eighth studio album, The Real Thing. In 2010 she joined the ensemble cast of the series Desperate Housewives as spoiled rich woman Renee Perry.
Filmography
all 129
TV Shows 68
Movies 61
self 43
Voice 5
Narrator 1
Tripped Up (2023)
Happy Clothes: A Film About Patricia Field (2023)
Celebrating 50 Years of Broadway's Best (2023)
Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space (2023)
The Jennifer Hudson Show (2022)
Queen of the Universe (2021)
Girls5eva (2021)
Bad Hair (2021)
Name That Tune (2021)
Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams (2020)
Vanessa Williams: Live From the West Side (2020)
Secret Celebrity RuPaul's Drag Race (2020)
Calling All T.O.T.S. (2020)
Singleholic (2020)
Miss Virginia (2019)
Tamron Hall (2019)
A Black Lady Sketch Show (2019)
Batman: Hush (2019)
T.O.T.S. (2019)
American Style (2019)
The Legend of Hallowaiian (2018)
Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018)
The Man from Earth: Holocene (2017)
Daytime Divas (2017)
Not Black Enough (2017)
The Secret She Kept (2016)
The $100,000 Pyramid (2016)
Match Game (2016)
Show Boat (2015)
The Librarians (2014)
The Trip to Bountiful (2014)
Broad City (2014)
He's Way More Famous Than You (2013)
Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor (2013)
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2012)
666 Park Avenue (2012)
The Mindy Project (2012)
Bethenny (2012)
Kitchen Cousins (2011)
A Mother's Love (2011)
A Poem Is... (2011)
Who Do You Think You Are? (2010)
Dreams Come True: A Celebration of Disney Animation (2009)
Modern Family (2009)
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen (2009)
Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009)
RuPaul's Drag Race (2009)
The Wendy Williams Show (2008)
Mama Mirabelle's Home Movies (2007)
Shear Genius (2007)
And Then Came Love (2007)
Ugly Betty (2006)
Rehearsing a Dream (2006)
John Edward Cross Country (2006)
South Beach (2006)
My Brother (2006)
The Reichen Show (2005)
Broadway's Lost Treasures III: The Best of The Tony Awards (2005)
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (2005)
Christmas in Washington (2004)
The 7th Annual Soul Train Christmas Starfest (2004)
Desperate Housewives (2004)
The Tony Danza Show (2004)
Johnson Family Vacation (2004)
On Air with Ryan Seacrest (2004)
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (2003)
Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003)
The Bachelorette (2003)
Boomtown (2002)
Keep the Faith, Baby (2002)
It's Black Entertainment (2002)
Santa, Baby! (2001)
Good Day Live (2001)
The Proud Family (2001)
WW 3 (2001)
A Diva's Christmas Carol (2000)
Christmas is Coming: Rob Mathes & Very Special Friends (2000)
Afrocentricity (2000)
Shaft (2000)
Don Quixote (2000)
The Courage to Love (2000)
Shaft: Still the Man (2000)
Light It Up (1999)
The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999)
Futuresport (1999)
I'll Make Me a World (1999)
L.A. Doctors (1998)
Dance with Me (1998)
Pavarotti & Friends - For the Children of Liberia (1998)
VH1 Divas (1998)
LateLine (1998)
Soul Food (1997)
Hoodlum (1997)
The View (1997)
The Odyssey (1997)
Jungle Cubs (1996)
Eraser (1996)
The Rosie O'Donnell Show (1996)
Bye Bye Birdie (1995)
Nothing Lasts Forever (1995)
Nothing Lasts Forever (1995)
MADtv (1995)
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1995)
Chicago Hope (1994)
Score with Chicks (1994)
Intimate Portrait (1993)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993)
The Jacksons: An American Dream (1992)
Stompin' at the Savoy (1992)
Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)
Another You (1991)
The Kid Who Loved Christmas (1990)
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990)
Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer (1990)
Full Exposure: The Sex Tapes Scandal (1989)
American Experience (1988)
LIVE with Kelly and Mark (1988)
Under the Gun (1988)
The Pick-up Artist (1987)
Partners in Crime (1984)
T. J. Hooker (1982)
Saturday Night Live (1975)
Days of Our Lives (1965)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962)
Tony Awards (1956)
The Oscars (1953)
Someone You Love: The HPV Epidemic
Don Quixote
False Profits
Ratings
Information
Known ForActing
GenderFemale
Birthday1963-03-18 (61 years old)
Birth NameVanessa Lynn Williams
Birth PlaceThe Bronx, United States of America
ReligionCatholicism
Height168-centimeter
Net Worth$28 Million
RelationshipsRick Fox (1999-01-01 - 2004-01-01), Ramon Hervey II (1987-01-01 - 1997-01-01)
SpouseJim Skrip
ChildrenSasha Fox, Jillian Hervey
FatherMilton Augustine Williams
SiblingsChris Williams
CitizenshipsUnited States of America
ResidencesChappaqua · Millwood, United States of America
Also Known AsVanessa L. William, Vanessa Lynn Williams
AwardsTheatre World Award, Mary Pickford Award, star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
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