Actor Tyler James Williams seamlessly transitioned from working as a child to working as an adult. During his formative years, he starred as semi-fictionalized young Chris Rock in the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris. As he grew up, he added more noteworthy credits — including Dear White People and The United States vs. Billie Holiday. He’s currently in the ensemble of the critically acclaimed, Emmy-winning sitcom Abbott Elementary. Williams’ portrayal of teacher Gregory Eddie in the series has earned him three Emmy nominations in a row for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. And now he’s making another transition with ease — actor to director — having directed an episode of Abbott last season.
Williams tells The Treatment about loving to let a moment breathe as a director, learning about comedy from an early appearance on Saturday Night Live with Jack Black, and why he wants to keep representing Black life more holistically than much of what he saw when he was growing up.