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The guardian appointed by the court to Wendy Williams failed in their attempt to stop a revealing documentary about the former talk show host from airing on Lifetime this weekend, according to a source familiar with the legal process.
“Lifetime appeared in court today and the documentary ‘Where’s Wendy Williams?’ will air this weekend, as planned,” a network spokesperson told CNN on Friday.
Williams’ legal guardian had filed a lawsuit against Lifetime’s parent company, A&E Television Networks, on Thursday in a New York state court, the source told CNN. The lawsuit is sealed, so the content of the claim is not public record, but the individual stated that Williams’ legal guardian was asking the court for a temporary restraining order to prevent Lifetime from airing the documentary.
Lifetime declined to comment on the content of the lawsuit.
The four-part docuseries, “Where’s Wendy Williams?” offers a painfully honest depiction of Williams’ life as she struggles with health issues and alcohol abuse. It is executive produced by Williams herself and includes on-camera participation from her family.
Williams was diagnosed with aphasia and dementia in 2023, according to a statement from his care team on Thursday. The conditions can affect cognitive function, communication and speech in affected people. according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
The conservatorship approved Williams’ participation in the project, according to Lifetime.
The motion to seal the contents of the lawsuit, obtained by CNN, names Sabrina Morrissey, a guardianship attorney, as the “temporary guardian of WWH” (Williams’ full name is Wendy Williams Hunter).
Morrissey has not responded to multiple requests for comment from CNN. A lawyer for Morrissey did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Although his care team did not respond to CNN’s requests for comment on the documentary or the lawsuit filed by Williams’ guardian, a representative of the care team issued a statement on Williams’ behalf on Friday afternoon.
“I want to say that I have immense gratitude for the love and kind words I have received after sharing my diagnosis of aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Let me say, wow! “Their response has been overwhelming,” the statement read in part. “I still need personal space and peace to thrive. Please know that we deeply appreciate your positivity and encouragement.”
When Williams initially pitched the documentary to Lifetime, the idea was to capture her life after her talk show while working to launch a podcast. But when the cameras started rolling, the producers realized that the story they initially set out to tell would be very different.
Mark Ford, executive producer of the documentary project, told CNN that nothing was filmed without the approval of Williams or his manager.
“We know it may be difficult for some of your fans to watch. But we believe this documentary captures the truth of Wendy’s life during the year and a half that we filmed it,” Ford added.
At the end of filming, Ford said that the producers were so concerned about Williams’ health that they urged his management team to seek further medical attention. “The documentary evolved into a direct depiction of Wendy’s dire health situation and whether or not she was receiving adequate care,” he said.
Williams is currently in a inpatient treatment center for cognitive care, according to his family and a Lifetime representative. The project’s producers have not had direct contact with Williams for more than six months.
Williams’ niece, Alex Finnie, who appears in the Lifetime documentary, told CNN this week that she doesn’t know if her aunt saw the finished project. She said Williams told her she wanted to make the documentary so she could reclaim her own narrative, no matter how painful the subject may be.
“We’ve talked about it briefly,” Finnie told CNN. “It’s a really sensitive issue.”
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Wendy Williams speaks on stage at the Soul Train Music Awards in 2014.
Williams’ family has expressed concern about the conservatorship, although they said they are glad he is now receiving proper care. Finnie told CNN that he communicates regularly with her aunt and spoke with her days ago. However, because Williams is currently undercourt ordered settlementHe said his family does not know the location or any other information about the facility where Williams is being treated, nor do they have access to call Williams directly.
Williams was placed under financial conservatorship by court order in February 2022 after Wells Fargo froze Williams’ accounts when a former financial advisor to the host informed the bank that Williams was “sick in his mind,” according to court documents. reference in the Lifetime documentary. .
Finnie said her family hopes the documentary will not only shed light on Williams’ journey, but also on the broader issue of guardianships and conservatorships.
“I really hope that people see my aunt as a human being, feeling for her, praying and hoping that she comes out better than ever, but also with an understanding of the whole system that is really managing her life well. now, not just for her, but for a lot of other people who are also at the center of all of this,” Finnie said.
The documentary’s producers believe the project and their collaboration with Williams allowed him to gain better support.
“On a personal level, we all care a lot about Wendy. “We are happy that she is in a better place now,” Ford told CNN. “And we hope that the documentary has contributed to helping her get to that safer place.”