• Busy Philipps paid tribute to Mary Beth Peil at the Gotham Film Awards.
• Philipps then clarified why the 82-year-old wasn’t there at the New York City event on November 28.
• Williams played Jen Lindley in the popular team drama from 1998 to 2003 opposite Evelyn “Grams” Ryan played by Peil

Busy Philipps doesn’t want to make you wait for an answer on this.

At the 2022 Gotham Film Awards, Michelle Williams paid a heartfelt homage to her Dawson’s Creek grandma Mary Beth Peil. Philipps then clarified why the 82-year-old wasn’t there at the New York City event on November 28.

“My bff was honored at the Gotham Awards last night with the Artist Tribute and I was so honored, as always, to be her date,” she wrote on Instagram. “Michelle, in true Michelle form, took the opportunity of being honored to pay tribute and honor the great Mary Beth Peil and to talk about how working with Mary Beth changed Michelle’s life and career.”

Philipps continued, “Anyway, it was really beautiful and I wish Mary Beth had been there with us (she was supposed to be but she didn’t feel well).”

Williams played Jen Lindley in the popular team drama from 1998 to 2003 opposite Evelyn “Grams” Ryan played by Peil. In the final two seasons, Phillips portrayed Audrey Liddell. The actress spoke about Peil’s influence on her both on and off the screen as she accepted her performance tribute award.

“Whenever something good happens for me in my life, I can draw a straight line back to somebody who was meant to be here tonight but, being a New Yorker, means living in a reality that you are definitely not in control of,” Williams said of Peil. “So she’s not in the room, but she’s in my heart.”

She continued, “Mary Beth Peil was the first artist that I had ever met in my life. She didn’t call herself that, but there was something different about her. It was the way she asked questions, the way that she leaned into conversations, and how excited she seemed for every moment of every day on our TV set. And I didn’t know what this ineffable quality was, but I knew I wanted to pull my chair closer to hers.”

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