Tony Hale brought his drama teacher as his SAG Awards date

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Published on January 21, 2018 09:16PM EST

Tony Hale melted the hearts of drama club students (current and former) around the world when he brought his former drama teacher Tina Williams with him as his date to the 2018 SAG Awards.

After winning a SAG Award alongside his Veep castmates for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, Hale told the press room he wanted to bring Williams because she changed his life. “I was so thankful to be able to bring her tonight,” he said. “She started a children’s theater. When I was in middle school, I was in sports and having a hard time, and my parents got me into this theater, and it just changed my life. So I’m incredibly grateful to her, and for her to be able to experience this is like a gift to me and a gift to her.”

Veep costar Paul Scheer joked that bringing Williams was also a big “eff you” to Hale’s former sports teachers. Hale jumped on the joke, echoing Scheer’s thoughts and adding, “I hope they hear that.”

Meanwhile, costar Timothy Simons questioned their word choice, asking “Did you just say sports teachers?”

The SAG Awards continue Sunday night in Los Angeles. See the complete list of winners here.