Where Is Kimberly Williams-Paisley Now?

After landing her first ever acting audition and appearing in a commercial at age 13, Kimberly Williams-Paisley was on her way to becoming a familiar face. While she spent the next three years trying to book her next project to no avail, when she finally had her breakthrough, it was in a classic '90s film: Her breakout role came in 1991 with the release of "Father of the Bride."

The Steve Martin-led feature presents Williams-Paisley as Annie, the titular bride, as audiences follow the ups and downs of the wedding planning process after her sudden engagement. The movie was a hit, grossing $89 million at the box office, and a sequel that filled out the "Father of the Bride" timeline was released in 1995.  After Williams-Paisley's career took off, she starred on television as Dana in the ABC sitcom "According to Jim." The series follows the life of a suburban family led by patriarch Jim (Jim Belushi). Dana is his sister-in-law and the opposite to him in terms of work ethic.

After "According to Jim," the actress continued to pop up on screens, even if it feels like you haven't seen her in a bit. If you've been wondering what became of her, here's everything you need to know about what Kimberly Williams-Paisley is doing now.

When her time on "According to Jim" came to a close, Kimberly Williams-Paisley continued to appear on television. She did a few episodic roles, like voicing Mama Armadillo in the children's series "Wonder Pets!" and portraying an attorney in "Boston Legal." Williams-Paisley's next big character on TV came with "Nashville," the country music show led by Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere.

Williams-Paisley played Peggy Kenter for the first two seasons of "Nashville." Peggy is connected to Rayna Jaymes' (Britton) husband Teddy Conrad (Eric Close), and helps cover up embezzlement. She later marries Teddy, who she has a romantic history with, after his and Rayna's divorce. Despite only being a recurring role, Peggy goes through severe loss during her story on "Nashville." She experiences a miscarriage and is later killed when someone tries to shoot Teddy at a festival.

Before joining the cast of "Nashville," the actress was already connected to the country music scene as the wife of singer Brad Paisley, who actually made an appearance in the Season 1 finale. "I didn't have to convince him [at] all. I didn't think he'd ever be on the show because he always said 'it's your thing,'" she told the radio station Big Frog 104. "They offered him this song with Rayna Jaymes, played by Connie Britton, and he jumped at it. He was really excited." This wasn't the first time Paisley made a guest appearance in one of his wife's shows — he also popped up in three episodes of "According to Jim."

Kimberly Williams-Paisley continued to appear on the silver screen, making her first major appearance after "According to Jim" in a popular musical franchise. Fans of the singing chipmunks may recognize the actress as Samantha, Dave's (Jason Lee) girlfriend, in "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip." In the fourth installment of the series, the Chipmunks and Chipettes head across the country to Miami in an effort to thwart a proposal, since they do not like Samantha's son Miles (Josh Green). Samantha has been with Dave the last few months, finally meeting the Chipmunks during a mini-golf outing. While the trio like her, her son isn't nice to them, making them worry about what will happen if Miles were to become their brother.

When the movie was released in 2015, Williams-Paisley's sons were six and eight years old and huge fans of the movies. "I was so excited to be in this film and know that they would come and see it, that they'd be excited," the actress told KATU's "AM Northwest." "It was a really fun experience." Her children enjoyed the movie, Williams-Paisley confirmed. She also shared with KATU that her kids thought Samantha's key scene at the airport (where she gets mad at the chipmunks and Miles for traveling on their own) wasn't even close to as mad as they've seen her get before.

Kimberly Williams-Paisley also took her talents to the page, penning a book that is incredibly personal. In April 2016, she released her New York Times best-selling memoir "Where the Light Gets In," documenting the journey she and her family went on after her mother Linda was diagnosed with a form of dementia called primary progressive aphasia. In the work, the actress highlights how her mother's disease impacted her and her father and siblings. From educating themselves on what Linda was going through to understanding how to cope with their emotions surrounding the news — especially as the matriarch's personality completely changed — her daughter details it all.

While speaking with "Today," Williams-Paisley described when she first recognized the signs in the lead up to her wedding to Brad Paisley in 2003. "She was very emotional and really wanted to be involved in the ceremony," the actress said. "We gave her something to read and she stood up in front of the congregation and wasn't able to get through the reading, which was very atypical for my mom." Linda and her family discovered the cause of her changing behavior in 2005. Williams-Paisley's mother eventually moved to an assisted living facility and became nonverbal. She died in 2016 at the age of 73.

Williams-Paisley's previous writing includes several articles published across a variety of platforms, from a year-long column about her life as a wife to pieces for "In Style" magazine. Her writing is included in the book "The Mother and Child Project: Raising Our Voices for Health and Hope" and she also co-authored a children's book called "Henry and the Hidden Veggie Garden" with her father.

Brad Paisley, Kimberly Williams-Paisley's husband, hosted the Country Music Awards alongside fellow country singer Carrie Underwood (who audiences may know as the victor of "American Idol" Season 4 and for her role in "Blue Bloods") for 11 consecutive years. The continued shared hosting gig caused a rumor that Paisley was cheating on his actress wife with Underwood to circulate, leading to publications like "Us Weekly" publishing stories on the topic. Underwood was also married, having tied the knot with former National Hockey League player Mike Fisher in 2010.

When speaking with "Us Weekly" at a gala in New York, Williams-Paisley laughed at the claim, not knowing what the outlet was asking her about at first. "Are you serious," she said in response. "Wow! I hope it helps our careers! That's all I can say." Williams-Paisley wasn't worried about the rumor, which was never substantiated, but it didn't stop the question from being raised as she tried to support the 5th Annual African Children's Choir Gala.

In 2017, Kimberly Williams-Paisley appeared in what would be the first of many Hallmark holiday movies, playing Eleanor Carter in the feel-good romantic flick "The Christmas Train." The actress has four Hallmark Christmas movies under her belt. In addition to "The Christmas Train," where she plays a romantic interest to Dermot Mulroney's Tom, she is the Spirit of Christmas Present in "A Nashville Christmas Carol," and Jennifer in the "Sister Swap" series. Consisting of two entries so far, both "Sister Swap" movies follow the same story but through the lens of a different sister. Williams-Paisley stars as one sister, and her biological sister Ashley Williams stars as her fictional sister Meg.

However, it isn't just the television movie giant that she's completed seasonal projects with. Williams-Paisley is also a part of the cast of the Netflix Christmas movies "The Christmas Chronicles" and "The Christmas Chronicles 2." She portrays Claire, the mother of Teddy (Judah Lewis) and Kate (Darby Camp), who is just trying to make Christmas special for her children after their father's death. In the sequel, Claire and her new boyfriend take their kids to Mexico for the holidays. Based on the ending of "The Christmas Chronicles 2," a third installment isn't out of the picture yet.

Kimberly Williams-Paisley's career behind the camera began with a co-producer credit on the 2003 TV movie "Lucky 7." While she co-produced another TV film the following year, and directed and produced a short in 2006, it wasn't until 2017 that the actress spread her wings as an executive producer and furthered her work behind the scenes.

Starting with the movie "Darrow & Darrow," a Hallmark mystery film, Williams-Paisley was credited as an executive producer for several Hallmark projects, including two more "Darrow & Darrow" productions and both "Sister Swap" films. While working on the "Sister Swap" movies, the actress shared a post on her Instagram, highlighting why she loves producing her work. "One of the perks of producing & acting is getting to cast and work alongside some of our best friends," she wrote.

Williams-Paisley also directed several projects in the early 2000s, though she hasn't directed anything recently. Between 2006 and 2008, she directed three episodes of "According to Jim" and two short films. The actress is also credited as a writer on both shorts.

Kimberly Williams-Paisley and her husband Brad Paisley continually give back to their local Tennessee community. They took their support to a new level in 2020 when they opened The Store, a need-based grocery store to help families facing food insecurity in the Nashville area. Different local agencies can recommend people for inclusion in the program, which provides access to bi-weekly shopping. Families can also self-nominate using a form on the website. 

The Store isn't just a food store, either. It offers other items that individuals may need, like hygiene items, family care items like diapers, and more specialty items like cards. Families that utilize The Store also have the option to attend a variety of courses to learn how to cook the foods they shopped for, meal planning and preparation, and financial literacy to stretch their budgets. The Store also hosts special events, like back to school drives , free clinics for pets, and a toy store during the holidays. A second location in the city is on the horizon due to the length of the waitlist.

The Store is only one example of the work Williams-Paisley does in her local community. In 2016, the actress joined the board for the Nashville Zoo. As of 2024, she is a member of their Advisory Board. Before opening The Store, she worked with Nashville Public Television by hosting episodes in their "Children's Health Crisis" series. The program focuses on different plights impacting children's health, like food security, obesity, infant mortality, and mental health. Williams-Paisley also works with the Middle Tennessee Golden Retriever Rescue and the Second Harvest Foodbank of Middle Tennessee. 

Christmas and television movies aren't the only ones Kimberly Williams-Paisley has been adding to her resume. In fact, the tear-jerking holiday film "The Christmas Chronicles" wasn't even the first time the actress worked with Netflix. She was a part of the 2017 film "You Get Me," marking her second project with actress Bella Thorne. The two previously worked together in "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip," where Thorne is the young singer Dave is producing music for in Miami. Williams-Paisley continued her time with the streamer by appearing in "Dog Gone," the 2023 biographical movie following the story of a man searching for his dog. In both projects, she portrays the mother of the lead male character.

The actress continues to be a part of major films and play matriarchs. She appeared in the 2023 movie "Jesus Revolution," a dramatization of the 1960s religious movement based out of California. Williams-Paisley is Charlene, the mother of Greg (Joel Courtney), the main character who goes on a religious journey. "Jesus Revolution" didn't do particularly well with critics, garnering only a 54% on Rotten Tomatoes, but audiences love the movie, awarding it a 99% on the review site. It was also pretty successful at the box office, bringing in $54 million against a $15 million budget.

In addition to working in her local community, Kimberly Williams-Paisley volunteers her time and resources to a variety of national and international charities. She works with CARE, a humanitarian organization helping women and children around the world, going on trips to areas they provide relief in. In 2024, she and one of her sons went to Honduras to learn more about how climate change is impacting the people who live there. According to her website, she also supports Meals on Wheels, JP/HRO, Feeding America, and Save the Children.

The actress uses her social media platforms to highlight causes important to her, like when she visited the Starbucks store where all the communication takes place through American Sign Language. Williams-Paisley has also posted online in favor of gun safety (wearing a t-shirt with the words "Protect Kids Not Guns" on the front), The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund and animal conservation, and she was also in unity with the Screen Actors Guild and Writers Guild of America strikes of 2023.

She and her family also support several organizations doing work with progressive brain disease in memory of her mother. The actress regularly collaborates with the Alzheimer's Association, participating in their annual Dance Party to End ALZ event with her sister, Ashley Williams. Williams-Paisley both promotes the event on her social media pages and dances — her husband even performed at the 2023 pre-show event. She also works with the Michael J Fox Foundation, which helps fund research for Parkinson's disease. The actress also appears at related events, speaking at the 5th Annual Symposium on Alzheimer's and Dementia in 2024.

Viewers wondering why they haven't seen Kimberly Williams-Paisley on their screens recently had their questions answered online. In an Instagram post in August 2024, the actress opened up about a health condition she's been experiencing behind closed doors. "Almost two years ago I lost my voice on stage at my Alzheimer's event in Nashville," she wrote. "It was embarrassing & scary & it never quite came back." Williams-Paisley had laryngeal nerve damage and a paralyzed vocal cord, making it difficult for her vocal cords to produce sound, ultimately impacting her speech. After exploring different treatment options, the actress underwent a laryngoplasty. The operation is meant to help increase the size of the paralyzed vocal cord so it can move against the other correctly.

She further discussed how the last two years impacted her mentally, especially as someone that was using their voice for different philanthropic endeavors and their career. "In the last two years, I've found power in using my voice in new ways," she wrote. "I've learned the strength & beauty of silence." Williams-Paisley also discovered new hobbies, including deadlifting and meditation.

Fans took to Reddit to express their sympathies and hopes for a successful recovery. Several colleagues and friends, like William Shatner, Kristin Chenoweth, Sheryl Crow, and Martina McBride, took to the comments of Williams-Paisley's post to share their best wishes. "This will be a great new chapter. Also I will miss the silence," Brad Paisley commented, adding a bit of humor to the situation. To her credit, the actress shared fun posts about her growing neck scarf collection as the incision heals. She always remains positive, which is just one of the things fans love about her.

If you still have fond memories of Williams-Paisley's breakout film, why not check out the remake of "The Father of the Bride," which broke Max streaming records when it dropped in 2022.