Inside Allison Williams' Relationship With Her Father Brian Williams

Allison Williams is an actor, best known for her roles as Marnie in Lena Dunham's HBO dramedy "Girls" and Rose in Jordan Peele's 2017 horror flick "Get Out." Despite her rise in major silver-screen roles, Allison seemingly already had a foot in Hollywood's door when she was born in 1988. Although her father, Brian Williams, isn't an actor, he is a relatively big household name. Brian is a famous journalist who started his career as a local news reporter in the '80s, per MSNBC. He landed a spot with NBC News as a National Correspondent in 1993. He currently anchors "The 11th Hour With Brian Williams" on MSNBC.

While Allison's brother, Doug, followed in their father's anchoring footsteps, per The New York Times, she chose a different route. Despite that decision, Allison and her father have appeared to remain close over the years. Here is a glimpse inside the actor's relationship with her fellow famous father.

Actor Allison Williams stepped up to the plate in February 2015 in order to stand by her father, Brian Williams, as he weathered a serious journalistic controversy. According to HuffPost, the famous news anchor had been suspended from his NBC anchor role after coming clean about embellishing stories about the Iraq War.

That same month, Allison appeared for an interview with Seth Meyers (via Detroit Free Press). When asked about her father, she said, "It's been tough ... Obviously, toughest on my dad, who bears the full burden of responsibility for it, but one thing the experience has not done is shake my trust and belief in him as a man." 

Allison then complimented his character. "He's a really good man. He's an honest man. He's a truthful man. He has so much integrity. He cares so much about journalism. And yes, he's a really good dad. I know you can trust him because, as any good daughter does, I've tested him on that," she said. However, despite her defense of Brian, she also wants to live outside his shadow.

In a 2017 interview with the Los Angeles Times, actor Allison Williams spoke about both her role in the horror film "Get Out" and the perception of nepotism in Hollywood. Specifically, she described feeling shut out by an unnamed publication while trying to make her own name in acting — given her father is famous news anchor Brian Williams.

"That was, like, the most upset I've ever been. To me, that symbolized so much," she shared. "You could use me on your cover, but you're not going to give me a name? I mean, it wasn't the most upset I've ever been. But it was when my feelings about that peaked the most." 

Allison continued on about the hard work she put in to get herself to where she is today in the entertainment industry. "It took years, and a lot of diligence on my part. But I've formed my own thing, and now I get people who are surprised to find out he's my dad. I dreamed that would happen, and it has: I'm no longer introduced to people as Brian Williams' daughter." While Allison is proud of her father, it's safe to say her father is most likely proud of her as well. 

Watching your daughter have (simulated) sex on screen has got to be one of the cringiest experiences for any dad, and Brian Williams is no exception. Allison Williams starred in "Girls" on HBO, which meant he got to see a LOT of his daughter. She played Marnie Michaels on the hit show, and her very first scene involved getting extremely down and dirty with a love interest's backside. It may have made for awkward viewing for her folks, but Allison took it in stride and was more concerned about saving her co-star's blushes than her own.

"I read it in the script, and I went into total action mode," she told Vulture. "I got everyone together, and I was like, 'All right, Grace [in wardrobe], you and me — we're going to come up with something so ingenious that he is going to feel comfortable.'" Allison's proud papa was by her side during the interview and he shared what it was like for him and Allison's mom to watch her steamy sex scenes. 

"For us, watching her is the family occupation, and everybody has to remember it's acting, no animals were harmed during the filming, and ideally, nobody gets hurt," Brian quipped. Meanwhile, Allison told Wired that having a famous father when you're an aspiring actress can be a blessing and a curse. She said she initially fought against claims of nepotism, but these days, she couldn't care less.

Brian Williams was left unemployed and flailing after his entire career was called into question amid accusations of fake news. However, there's no faking the fact that he's a great dad — and now, a loving and doting grandfather too. The former news anchor-turned-podcast host's daughter, Allison Williams, recently got engaged and had a baby.

"I'm obsessed with him. We're just in love," she admitted during an interview on "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon." Allison announced that she isn't the only one obsessed with the bundle of joy — his grandparents are equally thrilled. "They are completely enamored," she said, sharing that her folks are totally down for babysitting and diaper duties. Brian is especially in love with his first grandchild. Allison told Fallon that he loves to make the little fella laugh by telling Jerry Lewis jokes. So cute.

Brian is embracing the light and joy in his life after he battled his share of mud-slinging and putdowns when reports broke that he'd "embellished" a story about his reporting in Iraq (per NPR). However, Allison's close relationship with her father has led to her being his biggest defender. "One thing this experience has not done is shake my trust and belief in him as a man," she told Seth Meyers (via Insider). She added, "My dad has always been there for us, 100% of the time, even sometimes before we knew we needed him. And so this is — to be here for him is the least we can do right now."