Kate Hudson’s Stepmom Cindy Williams Dies – She Wants to Be Close with Stepsister Who Lost Mom

• Kate Hudson’s stepmother Cindy Williams, known for playing Shirley Feeney on “Laverne & Shirley,” has passed away at 75.

• Williams was married to Kate’s father, Bill Hudson, for 18 years, and they had two children. Later, Bill abandoned Kate.

• She shared why she forgave her dad and how much she wants to be close to her half-siblings, especially her sisters.

“Laverne & Shirley” actress Cindy Williams has died at age 75, her family revealed. The Hollywood veteran star passed away on January 25, 2023, in Los Angeles following a brief illness.

Williams’ son and daughter, Zack and Emily, mourn the death of their beloved mother. The siblings released a statement through a family spokeswoman, Liza Cranis, in which they paid tribute to her.

Cindy Williams poses with her son Zachary Hudson and daughter Emily Hudson at the ceremony honoring her with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on August 12, 2004 in Hollywood, California | Source: Getty Images

“The passing of our kind, hilarious mother, Cindy Williams, has brought us unsurmountable sadness that could never truly be expressed. Knowing and loving her has been our joy and privilege. She was one of a kind, beautiful, generous, and possessed a brilliant sense of humor and a glittering spirit that everyone loved,” they penned.

Besides being a mom of two, Williams was best known for her famous roles in American sitcoms such as “Happy Days” and “Laverne & Shirley.”

Actors Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall in a promotional photo for the “Laverne and Shirley,” sitcom on December 18, 1975 ┃Source: Getty Images

The Los Angeles native was married to singer Bill Hudson from the music band, The Hudson Brothers from 1982 until 2000.

Williams and the musician welcomed their first child together, daughter Emily, in 1982, and their second child, son Zack, followed four years later in 1986.

Williams Did Everything She Could to Build a Blended Family

Bill was previously married to actress Goldie Hawn from 1976 to 1982, with whom he had a son and daughter, actors Oliver and Kate Hudson.

Following his divorce from the Academy Award winner, the father of five began a new life with Williams, who fell pregnant with the couple’s eldest child in 1982, the same year they wed. She later quit “Laverne & Shirley,” to become a full-time mom. The series ran from 1976 to 1983 and had eight seasons.

Musician Bill Hudson pictured with his wife, actress Goldie Hawn on November 20, 1976 ┃Source: Getty Images

Williams and her newly wedded husband worked hard to build a happy blended family at their Malibu home in California. They often had Bill’s two other kids from his first marriage, Kate and Oliver, in their humble abode, and their stepmom gushed about them in June 1989:

“When Oliver and Kate are with us, it’s like all the kids are brothers and sisters.”

Because he was divorced from their mom, Bill had weekend visiting rights for his older offspring – but only when they were in LA. “When they’re in town, we have them as often as we can, but Goldie travels a lot,” Bill explained.

Bill Hudson and Cindy Williams during their wedding reception at Bill Hudson’s Santa Monica home on May 1, 1982 in Santa Monica, California ┃Source: Getty Images

He stated the Golden Globe Award winner was a “megastar” and a globetrotter with which he had no issue. However, Bill admitted Hawn’s schedule made things difficult for him and Williams to have the children together for some family “quality time.”

Even when Hawn was not traveling, his visiting rights were restricted to some extent. She had the kids living with her in Aspen, where she lived with her longtime boyfriend, actor Kurt Russell and their then-two-year-old son, Wyatt.

Bill expressed that although he wanted to avoid a custody battle with Hawn, he also did not “want to chase them all over the country. I’ve asked her to let me have them on a regular basis, and she tells me she’ll think about it,” he revealed.

Bill Hudson and Cindy Williams at a “Hysterical” wrap party on February 1, 1982 ┃Source: Getty Images

He and Williams, at times, found themselves at odds with their non-official arrangement with Hawn. There was a time when the couple went to pick up the kids, and Hawn and Russell were absent. Their son Wyatt wanted to tag along, and unfortunately, the duo had to leave him behind with his nanny.

“Everyone felt terrible,” said Bill. There was another instance when six-year-old Oliver asked whether his mother could come and see his newborn half-sister, Emily. Williams recalled:

“It broke my heart.”

Nonetheless, the TV star expressed her adoration for her stepson and stepdaughter. “I love these little people.” Meanwhile, her beloved husband revealed in 1986 that she was good with his children:

“She’s great. The kids love her. She’s always buying Oliver shoes or Kate dresses or picking up medicine for them.”

Bill Later Abandoned His Daughter Kate

Despite things appearing to be on good terms with the blended family, Bill and Williams filed for divorce in 2000 after eighteen years of marriage.

The estranged couple cited unspecified irreconcilable differences as the reason for the end of their nearly two-decade-long union.

Cindy Williams and Bill Hudson during 6th Annual American Cinema Awards at Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 6, 1989 in Beverly Hills, California ┃Source: Getty Images

As if that were not enough, Bill faced yet another relationship downfall with his elder kids, Oliver and Kate. In June 2015, his son posted a gut-wrenching Father’s Day tribute on Instagram alongside a photo of the siblings and their dad smiling. Oliver wrote:

“Happy abandonment day… @katehudson.”

“The Rules of Engagement” alum’s post went viral, and his sister added fuel to the fire by posting a black and white picture of herself and their stepdad, Russell, along with the caption:

“Pa, just simply, thank you. Happy Father’s Day. I love you to the moon and back.”

Kate’s older brother also shared a photograph of him and their stepparent and captioned the post: “Happy Father’s Day, Pa.”

(L-R) Actors Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn, Oliver Hudson and Kate Hudson pose at the post-premiere party for “Dark Blue” on February 12, 2003 in Los Angeles, California ┃Source: Getty Images

Bill and his ex-wife have previously clashed publicly about him allegedly abandoning their brood. He spoke frankly about the claims and stated Hawn intentionally alienated him from their son and daughter.

The Oregon native said when he and the mother of his kids parted ways, she never uttered “bad” words about him and that things changed when she started dating Russell. He accused her of making him out to be “the big, bad wolf.”

At some point, he asked her why she was continuously slandering him by saying he was “an absent father.” She responded: “Oh, Bill, you know it makes for a better story.”

Bill said the alleged false narrative has sadly turned into his reality as Kate and Oliver “drifted away” from him and rejected his constant pleas to remain a part of their lives. He said their mother is to blame as she poisoned the children against him since they were little.

Oliver Hudson and his sister Kate Hudson pose at the afterparty for the premiere of “The Skeleton Key” at the Universal Studio Tour on August 2, 2005 in Los Angeles, California ┃Source: Getty Images

Following his son and daughter’s triggering posts, Bill vowed to cut ties with them. He told the pair they were now “free” of him and that even though he is a father of five, he considered himself “a father of three,” adding:

“I no longer recognize Oliver and Kate as my own. I would ask them to stop using the Hudson name. He [Oliver] is dead to me now. As is Kate.”

Kate Wishes to Be Close to Her Half-Siblings

Despite everything that has transpired over the years, Kate said she does not hold a grudge against her dad. She revealed she constantly thinks about him and her half-siblings, Zack, Emily, and Lalania, whom Bill welcomed with Caroline Graham.

During an appearance on “The Howard Stern Show,” the Golden Globe Award winner said she had forgiven her father. “I forgive him,” she admitted.

Kate Hudson arrives at the UK Premiere of “The Skeleton Key” at Vue West End on July 20, 2005 in London, England ┃Source: Getty Images

On her Spotify podcast with Oliver, called “Sibling Revelry with Kate and Oliver Hudson,” the Hollywood duo discussed their 2021 resolutions, and he asked Kate what she wanted to resolve.

Kate revealed, “I’ve been thinking a lot about dad. I’ve been thinking about our sisters, that we don’t spend any time with, and our brothers. I was thinking about how everybody’s getting older, […] it would be nice to connect a little bit, especially with my sisters.”

The mother of three stressed that she and Oliver have four other siblings with whom they are disconnected and that it is time they changed that.

Meanwhile, Kate has not yet commented on her now-late stepmother’s death but seems to have a strong desire to be close to her loved ones.

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