Fans of former talk show host Wendy Williams, who have been asking, “Where Is Wendy Williams?” since a two-part Lifetime documentary aired earlier this year, finally have some answers. The 60-year-old Williams has been seen out in public for the first time since her health and legal issues were revealed earlier this year.
Last week, a Newark, New Jersey business shared that Williams, the former host of “The Wendy Williams Show,” visited their herbal supplement and holistic health shop. Víctor Bowman, the owner of Bolingo Balance, posted photos on Instagram and Facebook showing Williams shopping alongside her 24-year-old son, Kevin Hunter Jr. Bowman expressed his admiration in a Facebook caption, saying, “Wendy Williams come to my store. Much love Queen.”
Williams’ son also expressed his support for his mother in an Instagram comment, filled with prayer and crossed-fingers emojis, suggesting his hopes for her well-being.
This recent outing marks the first time Williams has been photographed in public since her team announced in February that she had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. Shortly after the announcement, Williams’ health struggles became the focus of the documentary “Where Is Wendy Williams?”, which highlighted her declining health and the legal battles surrounding her guardianship.
Wendy Williams’ Health Struggles
In the documentary, Williams’ son Kevin Hunter Jr. claimed that his mother’s condition, described as “alcohol-induced” dementia, was due to excessive drinking affecting her brain. Officially, her team has disclosed that she suffers from primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.
According to Alzheimers.gov, frontotemporal dementia is caused by disorders that gradually damage the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes, leading to changes in thinking, behavior, movement, language, and emotions. The exact cause of this type of dementia is still not fully understood. Aphasia, as defined by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, is a disorder that affects the expression and understanding of language and can result from brain damage due to stroke, injury, tumor, or progressive neurological disease.
Guardianship Controversy
In the documentary, Williams’ family openly criticized the court-appointed guardianship established in 2022 to oversee her finances, expressing their preference for a family member to take on the role. In February, the identity of her temporary guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, became known when she filed a lawsuit against A+E Networks to prevent the documentary from airing. Morrissey argued that Williams was not capable of consenting to the filming of the documentary due to her medical condition.
At the time of the lawsuit, Morrissey stated that Williams was under 24-hour medical care and supervision. Morrissey claimed that the documentary portrayed Williams in a humiliating manner by exploiting her medical condition. In response, A+E Networks argued that Morrissey only attempted to block the documentary after seeing how the guardianship issue was depicted in its trailer.
Despite these legal challenges, Lifetime, owned by A&E Networks, proceeded to air the documentary “Where Is Wendy Williams?” on February 24 and 25. The ongoing legal case is being heard in New York, with an appellate judge previously ruling that blocking the documentary would violate the First Amendment’s protection of free speech.
Williams’ talk show faced several delays in production in 2021, relying on guest hosts to fill her spot. “The Wendy Williams Show” was eventually canceled in 2022 after Williams took medical leave due to Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder. Since then, Williams has kept a relatively low profile.
