Michael K. Williams’ heartbroken nephew on Tuesday described the late actor as an “amazing uncle” who supported him for the duration of his additional than two a long time at the rear of bars.
Dominic Dupont was convicted of murder at 19, reportedly for the dying of a person for the duration of a struggle he got into as a teenager when defending his twin brother. He served 20 decades of a 25-to-everyday living phrase in advance of his sentence was commuted by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2017.
“Michael was instrumental in encouraging me get by the system of the prison working experience,” Dupont, 43, reported exterior his uncle’s Brooklyn superior-rise.
“He would operate seriously challenging to be a mentor to me and stimulate me to keep focused on the significant points.”
The beloved star, who died Monday at 54, drew from his individual ties to the jail system for his 2016 position as Rikers Island inmate Freddy Knight in HBO’s “The Evening Of,” for which he received his second of 5 Emmy nominations.
“It was not a little something exactly where I needed to do exploration to recognize that earth,” Williams advised NPR in 2016.
“I even now take a look at my loved ones that is incarcerated. And I see the good days. I see the negative days. I see the progress,” he explained. “I see what they lost by currently being incarcerated. And I observed the gains. I just dove into that.”
Through that interview, Williams said he was “extremely proud” of his nephew, incorporating, “f there were being these a expression as a design prisoner, he’d be the poster boy.”
Speaking to Vainness Good previous year, Williams explained that portraying Knight experienced supplied him a “glimpse” into his nephew’s experience behind bars.
“That was a extremely frightening and complicated process to expertise,” he mentioned, “there was absolutely some times that I obtained tripped up, what is reality and what is fiction.”
Legislation enforcement resources explained Staci Nixon Dupont, Dominic’s wife, known as 911 on Monday afternoon soon after getting the Emmy-nominee unresponsive in his penthouse. Requested no matter whether he was there when Staci produced the tragic discovery, Dominic explained “no comment.”
Williams, recognized for his roles on “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire,” died of a suspected drug overdose. Law enforcement are probing no matter whether the medicine in issue had been a batch of heroin laced with fentanyl.
The beloved actor experienced spoken publicly about his earlier grappling with drug habit, and opened up just a several month in the past about how he had sought psychological wellbeing procedure following filming “Lovecraft State.”
His nephew wouldn’t get drawn into whether it seemed like Williams — who other family have said was exited to land an Emmy nomination this calendar year for his perform as Montrose Freeman in the HBO drama — experienced been having difficulties in the times right before his death.
“I leave the opinions of people who have ideas or views about what Michael was battling with to them,” he said. “That is exactly where I will depart that.”
Dupont, who worked as a youth counselor all through his time in prison, credited his uncle with “helping me make a productive changeover back again into the group,” adhering to his release in 2018.
“The base line is Michael was a single of the individuals I discovered as acquiring skin in the activity and remaining dedicated to helping persons prosper,” he said.
Both uncle and nephew worked to greater the life of town little ones with the nonprofit Earning Young children Win, which Williams launched and Dupont operates for as director of courses, in accordance to his LinkedIn.
“He was significant about support perform and serving to persons in the local community and was the kind of particular person fully commited to viewing people realize success,” Dupont mentioned.
The activist actor, who grew up in general public housing in East Flatbush, interviewed his nephew in the 2018 Vice documentary “Raised in the Program,” which explored the juvenile felony justice procedure.
The household, such as the actor’s mom Paula Williams and his brother, Paul Carey, are “doing the ideal we can in the situation,” Dupont claimed.
“We want to grieve and celebrate his lifetime and celebrate his legacy.”
Extra reporting by Joe Marino
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