In the secret family of Michael K. Williams

He died alone, unmarried and childless — but “The Wire” actor Michael K. Williams will always be known as “father” to Karim Anderson and his siblings.

“This man was our father. This is the only person we knew as a father,” Anderson, a home chef, told The Post, speaking for the first time about Williams’ connection to him, his brother and sister, who raised Williams.

The beloved The Wire star, who played the unforgettable Omar, left no will when he accidentally overdosed on fentynal heroin at his Williamsburg penthouse in September. According to court records, his estate is worth a modest $450,000.

“This really breaks my heart,” Anderson said when asked about Brooklyn Surrogate Court papers identifying Williams’ mother, Paula, as his only surviving relative.

“He [would] say he has two sons and a daughter,” Anderson said. “No, he wasn’t a biological father to us. We all lived together. He raised us.”

Williams met Anderson’s mother Candy decades ago at Brooklyn’s Vanderveer Estates, the sprawling Flatbush condominium complex where Williams grew up. Candy lived in Apartment 1B; Williams, in 4E, Anderson said.

“They met in the elevator and he was holding a baby, and my mom was like, ‘You’re holding the baby wrong,'” Anderson recalled. “And he said, ‘I have no idea, my friend just put this baby on my lap and I have to go to this meeting.’

Candy helped him out and sparked a bond. But she struggled to raise her three children, Elijah, Karim and Chanel, and eventually sent them to live with a family in Trinidad.

Then, for no other reason than the size of his heart, Williams stepped in.

“He sent for us. He paid for our tickets to leave Trinidad and return to New York,” Anderson said. “This black man walked in, saw this single black mom trying to make ends meet, and he stood by her and raised her kids with her.

“They were best friends.”

William lived with Candy and the children for several years. She helped style his hair in the first season of his breakout role as gay, gunman, drug dealer robbing Omar, Anderson said.

“This is my family and he made it that way. And it’s such a beautiful story to tell,” Anderson said. “I’m tired of seeing the story of this nephew Dominic going in and finding him dead and fentanyl. No, this man raised three children. We moved as a system, we moved as a unit.

“We owe him so much,” he said, adding, “How happy he was when my sister gave birth to her firstborn.”

Williams proudly showed off his “sons” in social media posts.

“Two of the best things that have ever come into my life, my sons, happy birthday Karim and much more health. Love and very proud of you both,” he wrote alongside a picture of himself with Elijah and Karim, who has several pictures of Williams on his website.

In January 2021, Williams posted a photo of herself with Elijah and captioned the picture “I 🖤U Son.”

It came just days after paying tribute to Candy, who died on Jan. 13, 2021, Anderson said.

“Of all the things you’ve done for me Candy, bringing Elijah Karim and Chanel into my life was the best. They gave me purpose and taught me responsibility. We might not have been the traditional family, but we were family nonetheless. Thank you for always loving me no matter who I was. Sleep well Queen❤️🙏🏿🦋.”

Reflecting on Thanksgiving and Christmas with Williams’ family in Pennsylvania, Karim said his father’s death was a punch in the pit of the stomach.

“It felt like everything we knew about him, everything he did for us, died with him when he died. All the challenges, all the beautiful moments. It was just sad,” he said.

The Anderson kids aren’t planning a lawsuit over Williams’ estate.

“There is no animosity, but I say whoever runs the estate is doing the right thing. Do what Michael Kenneth Williams would have done. He loved his children and he loved his circle. Do what is right for the family he called his family,” he said.