Capote Vs. The Swans 8 Months After His Death: Treat Williams Gets Dedication at the End of Feud

The late actor played William Paley in the Ryan Murphy-helmed limited series, which ended up being his final project before his sudden death from a motorcycle accident in June Feud Capote vs

Published Time: 15.02.2024 - 07:31:09 Modified Time: 15.02.2024 - 07:31:09

The late actor played William Paley in the Ryan Murphy-helmed limited series, which ended up being his final project before his sudden death from a motorcycle accident in June

Feud: Capote vs. The Swans showed love for the late Treat Williams on its Valentine’s Day episode.

At the conclusion of Wednesday’s installment, before the credits rolled, a title card reading “In Memory of Treat Williams 1951 – 2023” filled the screen.

Williams died in a motorcycle crash in June at age 71. The Emmy-nominated actor spent some of his final days on the set of the new FX series portraying CBS co-founder William Paley opposite Naomi Watts, who plays Paley's wife andTruman Capote’s former close friend Babe Paley.

Capote vs. The Swans tells the story of the fallout between Babe and her fellow Manhattan socialites, who Capote called his “swans,” in the aftermath of the release of his salacious "La Côte Basque, 1965" story.

Wednesday's episode saw Babe accept her lung cancer diagnosis — and the fact that her husband had been sleeping with her close friend Slim Keith (Diane Lane). Babe told Bill that "Slim is good" for him to continue seeing after she dies. Meanwhile, Slim informed Capote he couldn't repair his friendship with Babe during her remaining days.

Truman dealt with health issues of his own in Wednesday's Feud, attempting to get sober after finding out from a CT scan that his brain was shrinking from his alcohol consumption. The Pulitzer Prize nominee filled the void of the swans by taking on a new mentor in the form of his lover John O'Shea's (Russell Tovey) daughter.

When Feud hosted its premiere in New York City last month, co-creator Ryan Murphy recalled his final conversation with Williams.

“The last thing he said to me was, he grabbed my face and said, 'I loved every minute,’” Murphy, 58, told PEOPLE.

Naomi Watts, who also executive producedCapote Vs. The Swans, told PEOPLE that Williams shared a similar sentiment with her.

“He was delighted every day with these incredible scenes,” themom of two, 55, said. “He talked about it, ‘I cannot -

believe I've got such good material.’ And I think we all felt like that, even some of those scenes where he was behaving horribly — the character, not Treat!”

In "La Côte Basque, 1965," Capote wrote about an affair Bill had been having with the wife of a New York governor; in the show, the tryst takes place with Nelson Rockefeller’s second wife Mary, known as “Happy.” Despite his alleged philandering, Bill continued to care for Babe as she died of cancer.

“The times where Babe is at the end of her life, he had emotion that was so easily accessible,” Watts said. “And I think it was a lot to do with being at this point in his life where he was just so grateful. We're all completely heartbroken by it and devastated that he's not going to see his wonderful, wonderful work up there.”

Williams’s wife Pam also said her husband “couldn’t have been happier” working on Feud.

“He was truly in his element working with the best of the best in every department on this project,” Pam, 69, told PEOPLE.

Pam and her childrenGill, 31, and Ellie, 25, whom she shared with Treat, didn’t know what to expect when watching the star in his final role.

“It’s horrible thought to think I’ll be watching his last project — not a comfortable place to be or think about — but of course we’ll be there to support him as always,” Pam said.

According to Tom Hollander, who portrays Capote inFeud, the cast still hasn’t processed Williams’ death.

“It's very, very tragic and it's quite difficult for us to talk about because he was right there just now,” the British actor, 56, told PEOPLE. “We haven't really mourned him. We were just getting to know him. He was a very, very sweet spirit. He was the most positive up, glass-half-full enthusiast.”

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Feud: Capote vs. The Swans airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX.