William had parts in films Cruising, The Border, and The Right Stuff early in his career, but he landed his first leading film role in the 1990 film Pastime, playing Roy Dean Bream, a minor-league player trying to get to the major leagues.
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”I’ve been dealing a lot with Hollywood and career decisions, and a lot of times this business has us comparing ourselves to who has this and who has that,” the actor told Entertainment Weekly in 1991, after the film came out in theaters. “But like Roy Dean says, just being in the game is the main thing.”
To play an aging pitcher in the film, William had to dye his hair gray and act less agile than he was in real-life. “On a spiritual level, he is very advanced,” he said of the character. “He has a nice karmic code. It’s like a certain kind of guru; he understood life through baseball.”
His performance impressed critics, though: William earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination in the Best Male Lead category. “I’m just really happy to make my living as an actor,” he told EW. ”As I always say, it’s better than a real job any day.”
