Daytime talk show legend Wendy Williams has been diagnosed with dementia and aphasia. It is the same illness that afflicted actor Bruce Willis in 2023.
Last year, Williams, 59, was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, according to a Thursday news release from her representatives.
“Wendy would not have received confirmation of these diagnoses were it not for the diligence of her current care team, who she chose, and the extraordinary work of the specialists at Weill Cornell Medicine. Receiving a diagnosis has enabled Wendy to receive the medical care she requires,” the news release said.
News of the diagnosis comes a day after a People magazine cover story detailed the first public comments from Williams’ brother, sister and niece on the talk show host’s personal journey over the last few years.
“We’ve all seen the images over the last few months and, really, few years of what has seemed like a spiral for my aunt,” Williams’ niece and Miami news anchor Alex Finnie said. “It was shocking and heartbreaking to see her in this state.”
According to the People article, Williams now resides in an undisclosed care facility. Her sister Wanda Finnie said that Williams can call the family, but they cannot call her themselves, and they do not know where she’s housed.
“The people who love her cannot see her,” Wanda Finnie, Alex Finnie’s mom, told People.
Diagnosis comes after talk show’s end in 2022
In fall 2021, Williams’ long-running daytime talk show “The Wendy Williams Show” experienced several production delays before a rotating slate of guest hosts stepped in, including Leah Remini, comedianMichael Rapaport and former co-host of “The View” Sherri Shepherd. “Wendy” was canceled in 2022 after Williams took medical leave during a battle with the autoimmune disorder Graves’ disease.
That same year, she was placed under a financial guardianship. Wells Fargo argued at the time that she was an “incapacitated person,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. Later, the production company behind “Wendy” replaced the program with “Sherri” featuring Shepherd in the same time slot in September 2022.
The upcoming two-part Lifetime documentary “Where is Wendy Williams?,” which traces Williams’ abrupt exit from public life, will air Saturday and Sunday. The network previously aired a biopic about the talk show host’s life, “Wendy Williams: The Movie,” and a documentary, “Wendy Williams: What a Mess,” both in 2021.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow
