Wendy Williams' former manager and colleagues are speaking out about the final months of the Wendy Williams Show.
The syndicated talk show came to an end June 17 following a rotation of guest hosts, who filled in for Williams as she attended to health problems, per a Sept. 2021 statement. But as the series drew to a close, Williams said that she hoped to return to her iconic purple chair in the near future.
While Debar-Mercury, the production company behind the show, was initially hopeful Williams could return, the company's executive vp of programming Lonnie Burstein said to The Hollywood Reporter Aug. 17 it eventually became clear that Williams' condition wasn't going to improve enough for her to host again. "To this day," he said in THR's report outlining the long-running show's demise, "we don't know truly what the issue is."
However, as the production company started looking at next steps for the show, Williams' former manager, Bernie Young, remained optimistic given the host's previous bouts with illnesses. Young, who learned he was fired by Williams online, shared to THR, "She got sick the year before, and she was very sick one day and the next day she was 300 percent better, so while they're searching [for answers], I'm saying, ‘That could happen.'"
Debmar-Mercury co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein noted to THR that they tried to continue the show with guest hosts as long as they could, but they eventually had to make an official announcement regarding the future of The Wendy Williams Show.
When they confirmed in February the show would end after 13 seasons, Williams reportedly reached out to ask why. Bernstein noted to THR that he told her, "‘We'd love to work with you, and there are lots of ways and lots of buyers, but you need to come back, and we need to know that you're OK. You can't just call after nine months and say, ‘I'm ready.'"
As The Wendy Williams Show finale approached, Williams spoke out on social media, saying that she never agreed to end the show. But Williams' new manager William Selby told THR that the host's ailing health contributed to the misunderstanding. "No matter how many people could have told her—you could have told her, I could have told her—she's thinking, ‘I'll be ready in a week and I'm coming to shoot,'" he explained. "So, [the finale] kind of happened all of a sudden for her, even though it was unraveling before her eyes."
Selby told THR he's doing his best to help Williams. "She's an adult," he said. "I can't lock her up in a house and say, ‘Don't move, don't even look out the window.' This isn't prison."
Selby continued, "In going through so many things, she's going to have off [moments]. Doesn't mean she's about to die, doesn't mean she's going crazy, it just means maybe she's not feeling well today."
Regarding reports that Williams is struggling with alcoholism, Williams' personal rep Shawn Zanotti told THR, "It has been no secret that Wendy has battled with addiction over the years but at this time Wendy is on the road to recovery and healing herself from her chronic illnesses and her grievances of the past."
Sherri Shepherd, who served as a frequent guest host on The Wendy Williams Show, is due to take over the timeslot this fall with her talk show Sherri.