Ryan Piers Williams Biography

Ryan Piers Williams, who had began film editing at KVIA when he was still a high school student, developed an interest in film-making early on and was inspired to follow a career in the entertainment industry. He worked on several short videos during his time at the University of Texas. While pursuing a film course at the USC, he got the once-in-a-lifetime chance to join an internship program which was mentored by director Stephen Soderbergh. In 2007, while still studying at USC, he wrote, produced, directed and acted in the short film 'Muertas', which was shot in Texas and Mexico. Throughout the year, the film was screened at the San Diego Latino Film Festival, AFI Dallas Film Festival, and the Austin Film Festival. Two years later, he began working on the film 'The Dry Land', for which he began shooting in 2010. The film, which he had written and directed, was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and for the 'Best Feature Film' award at the 'Imagen Awards'. His then-girlfriend, America Ferrera, was also nominated for the 'Best Actress' award at the 'Imagen Awards' for her performance in the film. Now, the successful actor and director is better recognized as the husband of Ferrera.

Ryan Piers Williams was born on May 13, 1981 in El Paso, Texas. He is only child of his parents and spent a good part of his childhood with his grandparents. He attended J.M. Hanks High School and later enrolled into the University of Texas. However, he eventually transferred to the University of Southern California (USC) and graduated from USC School of Arts. He began painting in 2012, while he was studying at USC.

Ryan Piers Williams met his future wife America Ferrera in 2005, when both of them were students at the University of Southern California. He was at the time working on his student film 'Muertas', and had cast her in a major role in the film. The two shared the same passion for films and connected immediately over their work. They moved in together in 2007. The two got engaged on June 17, 2010, and one year later, on June 27, 2011, they finally got married at a private ceremony attended by close friends and family members. The wedding ceremony was hosted in Chappaqua, New York, at the house of Vanessa Williams, who was Ferrera’s co-star on the series 'Ugly Betty', and was officiated by another of her co-stars, Judith Light. Some of the celebrity guests in attendance included Blake Lively, Alexis Bledel and Mark Indelicato.

In June 2017, the couple celebrated 12 years of togetherness with a trip to Iceland. On New Year's Eve 2017, he and his wife announced via the same Instagram post on both of their profiles that they were expecting their first child together. Ferrera gave birth to a son named Sebastian Pier Williams on May 29, 2018. Apart from 'Muertas', the couple worked together again in the 2010 feature film 'The Dry Land', and starred together in his 2014 drama film 'X/Y'. Apart from working together in films, they also teamed up to co-found the activism organization Harness with Wilmer Valderrama after the 2016 Presidential elections. It is a collective that attempts to connect "communities through conversation to inspire action and power change". Both Williams and his wife Ferrera very actively participate in promoting various charitable causes that they support, including DACA, Planned Parenthood, and GSLEN. He also attended the Women's March on Washington with his wife, who was a featured speaker at the event.