Wendy Williams’s Guardian Says She Couldn’t Consent to Lifetime Doc

As a long-time admirer of Wendy Williams and her unapologetic style, it is disheartening to witness this current situation unfold. It appears that the line between supporting her personal journey and respecting her privacy has become blurred in the pursuit of entertainment.


Despite Wendy Williams’ absence from public view, her personal life continues to be a matter of public discussion. In September 2023, her guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, submitted a complaint in New York, alleging that Williams lacked the capacity to consent to a Lifetime documentary series about her current life. The Los Angeles Times reported this claim. Diagnosed with early-onset dementia and aphasia in 2023, Williams made her health condition public in February 2024, and has been under guardianship since 2022. The Lifetime series titled “Where Is Wendy Williams?” listed Williams as an executive producer. According to the complaint, Williams was too vulnerable to agree to be filmed, let alone subjected to humiliation and exploitation. The complaint seeks financial compensation from the defendants, including A&E Networks (Lifetime’s parent company), and requests that the documentary series be halted.

In the lawsuit, Morrissey argues that any contracts Williams might have signed, such as an “on-screen talent contract”, are invalid because they were not shown to her guardian. The filming for the documentary started in August 2022 and ended in April 2023 – a month before Williams was first diagnosed. When the trailer for the documentary was released on February 2, Morrissey tried to halt the series’ broadcast, but this request was denied by an appellate judge, as reported by the Times. The documentarians have expressed concerns about Williams’s guardianship. Mark Ford, one of the executive producers, stated to Vulture on February 27, 2024 that there is a bill in the New York Legislature aimed at preventing guardian abuse and giving family members access to their loved ones who are under guardianship. He added that this case serves as an example of a family wanting to stay connected, but being unable to do so for unclear reasons.

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2024-11-27 19:53