Wendy Williams documentary horrifies and exploits her illness, complaint says: NPR

The documentary of a lifetime Where is Wendy Williams? It included scenes in which the former talk show host appeared erratic, confused and forgetful. However, the filmmakers credited Williams, who suffers from dementia and aphasia, as the film’s “executive producer.” docuseries.

Now, in a newly unsealed complaint, Williams’ guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, argues that due to her medical condition, Williams did not have the capacity to consent to the film and would not have approved of the way she was portrayed.

“This blatant exploitation of a vulnerable woman with a serious medical condition and loved by millions inside and outside the African American community is repugnant and cannot be allowed,” reads the complaint filed Feb. 21 in the state Supreme Court. NY. .

The four-episode series, which Airing last month, it chronicles Williams’ life after the end of her hit daytime TV show. The Wendy Williams Show and his struggle with alcohol addiction, serious health ailments and financial problems.

The complaint against A&E Television Networks and Entertainment One Reality Productions also accuses the filmmakers of failing to adequately communicate the project to Williams’ conservator or the court presiding over the conservatorship, adding that no one acting in Williams’ “best interests” would have allowed such thing. movie to be broadcast.

Williams was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia in May 2023, a few months after filming. Her diagnosis was made public last month.

The documentary’s executive producer, Mark Ford, said the film crew would never have “got into” the project if they had known Williams had dementia, adding that “Wendy had good days and bad days.”

“We hope that people get to the end and understand why we decided to end the project with Wendy, her family and her management supporting it,” he said in an interview with Los Angeles Times.

In response to the complaint, A&E said in a statement: “We also hope that our documents will be opened, as they tell a very different story.”

Entertainment One Reality Productions did not immediately respond to NPR request for comment.

Mysterious company signed docuseries contract

Williams was placed under temporary financial conservatorship in May 2022 after her bank, Wells Fargo, expressed concerns that she was an “incapacitated person” and a “victim of undue influence and financial exploitation.”

A few months later, in January 2023, Entertainment One, Williams and a company called The Wendy Experience, Inc. signed a contract agreeing to the documentary.

According to the complaint, Williams’ guardian, Morrissey, claims that she was unaware of the contract at the time and would never have agreed to the contract, which included terms such as that Williams had no control over the final outcome and that Williams waived all medical privileges. patient during the process. project.

It is also unclear who created and was the CEO of The Wendy Experience, Inc., according to the complaint.

The company, which was formed a month after Williams’ tutelage, was not approved by Morrissey. The complaint contends that the CEO’s signature is “not clearly legible” but “very distinguishable” from Williams’ signature, suggesting that the CEO is not Williams but someone else.

Morrissey asks the court to void the contract.

Williams’ guardian says she was misled into believing the docuseries would be “positive and beneficial” for Williams.

In a separate court document, Morrissey says he initially allowed the film project to move forward on the basis that it would be “positive and beneficial” to Williams’ legacy. Morrissey also believed that she and the court would be able to review and have final say on any footage before it was released.

Instead, Morrissey says the docuseries trailer was made public without “prior notice and without seeking or obtaining prior approval” from her or the court.

“I was horrified by the release of the trailer and its contents,” Morrissey said in the court filing obtained by NPR this week.

Williams’ guardian alleges that the trailer incorrectly portrays the TV star as a “drunk and laughing stock.” Morrissey added that he would never have approved the documentary’s release.

Prior to the documentary’s release, Morrissey attempted to block the film from being broadcast. The court approved Morrissey’s request, but A&E later appealed the decision. A judge later approved A&E’s appeal on First Amendment grounds.