Michelle Williams calls Dying for Sex "one of the most profound experiences" of her career

Michelle Williams, who is measured in her selection of emotionally charged roles, recently spoke about her experience on Dying for Sex and how it was "one of the most profound experiences" she has ever had. In a recent interview with Deadline, she said,

"We have been so blessed, so fortunate to be on the receiving end of what the show has meant to people. And I greet that with such appreciation and so much humility. And again, I draw it all right back to Molly and Nikki. We are amplifiers of who they were, so all the credit goes straight back to them."

She added,

"But to receive the reaction of the show have been one of the most profound experiences of my professional life.”

The FX and Hulu limited series that premiered on April 4, 2025, is based on the same-titled Wondery podcast and true story of Molly Kochan, a woman diagnosed with terminal breast cancer who embarks upon a s*xual exploration of self-discovery.

Williams plays the title role of Molly, and her best friend and emotional shield throughout the series, Nikki, is played by Jenny Slate. Williams' work was also widely critically acclaimed, earning her a 2025 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.

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The real-life backstory behind Dying for Sex

Molly Kochan's real-life backstory was originally presented to listeners by Nikki Boyer's production company on the Dying for Sex podcast. It was instantly recognizable in its unapologetic manner of dealing with s*x, death, friendship, and vulnerability. The moment Molly learned she had stage IV breast cancer, she made a personal evaluation of her marriage and values and divorced her husband, and embarked on a series of s*xual and emotional adventures in a bid to regain her power.

The podcast worked because it was raw and human, not sensationalized. The TV series version by Liz Meriwether (The Dropout) and Kim Rosenstock (New Girl, Single Drunk Female) accomplishes that in the sense that it does not just address the s*xual journey but also the emotional underpinning for Molly's decisions. The series gets its balance of humor, sadness, cringeworthy moments, and sweetness.

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Michelle Williams on entering Molly's world in Dying for Sex

Speaking to Deadline, Williams noted that taking on Molly’s character was transformative.

“I had the absolute time of my life. I adore her [Domont]. She gave me an amazing opportunity to play somebody I’ve never done anything like before, and also to explore genre.”

She said, reflecting on the real-life source material and the personal nature of the character’s journey.

Williams approached the role with care, acknowledging the responsibility of portraying someone who truly lived, made bold choices, and ultimately died from her illness.

As opposed to the emotional listening she needed to do with her previous work in pretend characters, with this film, there was a call for intense emotional listening, to the podcast, and to Molly's memory in that it had been cared for by her best friend, Nikki.

Williams talked about the tact involved in bringing such close history onto the screen. She also said,

"I mean, when I saw Fair Play, I was so blown away by her, the mind behind it, by her filmmaking, by her storytelling tension that she was building. And I haven’t made a lot of work like that, so I was really excited. It’s a completely different character for me and a completely different genre for me and that was just an absolute thrill.”

The performances, for which it was praised for restraint of feeling and naturalism, reflect an evident attempt at homage, but not imitation, of the character of Molly's life.

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On-Screen performance and Emmy Award

Williams's performance is seen on screen during all eight episodes of the series. Although there were some early mischaracterizations, Dying for Sex is not an animated voice-over or audio-only production, and Williams wasn't even submitted in a voice-over category. Rather, she was entered in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category for the 2025 Primetime Emmy Awards, once again solidifying her position as one of television's greatest dramatic performers.

She owed it to restraint, open-mindedness, and honesty, a prejudice against melodrama in favor of realism. The critics particularly noted how Williams managed the tone changes in the series: from moments of obvious comedy and cringeworthy to moments of unflinching sadness and wrestling with death. The series was described as emotionally rich and narratively unapologetic.

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Creative leadership of Dying for Sex

The adaptation occurred on television with showrunners Kim Rosenstock and Liz Meriwether. Both writers are used to balancing pathos and comedy when developing characters. Their process of bringing Dying for Sex to television was to hold onto the tone of the original podcast but make room for visual storytelling and dramatic tension. The show's direction allows for the potential of introspection and comedy, and the project is not easily categorizable within genres.

Comedic lead and dramatic actress Jenny Slate stars as Nikki, Molly's more refined confidante and emotional support, the good friend. Williams and Slate share the foundation of the show, a very realistic one, established and proven with illness and transformation.

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An 8-episode story based on human reality

The series consists of eight episodes. Each episode delves into the numerous colors of Molly's shifting platonic and erotic ties and chronicles her physical and mental decline. The series does capture unease, existential, and s*xual, but doesn't exploit it.

What distinguishes Dying for Sex from other dramas is the concern the show has with being realistic. It avoids glib solutions and heroic platitude nonsense. It looks for the small things: the words of comfort murmured quietly between a friend, the posturing of hard talk, the after-work laughter at being diagnosed. Storytelling like this has added poignancy when audience members are famished for stories rooted in real life.

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Michelle Williams's acceptance of Dying for Sex as "profound" says as much about the knowing intimacy of the production as it does about the scope of the production. Molly Kochan's life, attached to her best friend at first, then to Williams's delicate on-screen performances, haunts because it brings people in contact with what most won't discuss: s*x, death, fear, and freedom.

Her Emmy-nominated portrayal is not only proof of the richness of her work and commitment to speaking her truth, but also serves to keep alive a woman who lived her truth even unto death. In Molly's actual life, Dying for Sex has no happy ending, no heroism, just truth, friendship, and the hard courage it takes to die on your own terms.

Also read: Dying for Sex: Is the drama series based on a podcast? Details explored