Wendy Williams' Family Reportedly Still Have No Access To Her Amid 60th Birthday
By Afouda Bamidele on July 19, 2024 at 1:00 PM EDT
Wendy Williams remains out of bounds to her family members as she continues to deal with her health issues.
Things have not improved between the former talk show host and her family, who have still not been able to contact her physically.
Wendy Williams celebrated her 60th birthday out of reach to her family amid her battle with dementia and progressive aphasia.
Wendy Williams' Family Are Rooting For Her On Her Birthday
Despite being denied access to the star, her family declared that she remains in their thoughts and prayers, especially as she clocks a new age, and they wish her nothing but the best through the rest of her journey in life.
According to a source close to the parties, Williams' family has no idea where she is currently staying due to the ongoing litigation and the fact that no provisions have been made to facilitate contact between them.
All these obstacles have not changed her family's admiration for her as the source declared to PEOPLE that Williams "was, is and always will be an icon" to her loved ones.
Her court-appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, has not commented on the new development, although things are currently tense between the celebrity's family and her guardian.
Williams' 60th birthday was celebrated with warm wishes from her colleagues and fans worldwide. Her colleague and commentator Evan Ross Katz penned an emotional tribute to her on Instagram alongside two old pictures of both of them on William's talk show.
"Happy 60th birthday to the unyielding queen of daytime, the icon, the legend, the moment: Wendy Williams. We love you. We miss you. Pop culture just isn't the same without your commentary. Wishing you health and happiness always," Katz wrote in his caption.
The Iconic Talk Show Host's Family Have Tried To Access Her For Over 2 Year
The Williams family's yearning to see the talk show icon began in April 2022 when her court-ordered guardianship program took full effect.
Her sister, Wanda Finnie, noted that she was not informed of Williams' diagnosis after she was admitted to a facility for treatment for cognitive problems.
According to Finnie, they have been in the dark about her health since the fall of 2021, which was also the last time they saw her.
"When she was in Florida, there were a number of people involved.Even beyond family, there were doctors involved, people in Wendy's professional world that were involved," Finnie said, adding that she had her health team and family around her at the time and her health was greatly improving.
Her family continued that the only person who currently has unrestricted access to her is Morrissey, as they wondered how she deteriorated from the healthy Wendy they have always loved to someone who now frequents the hospital.
Finnie questioned the rationale behind the court's preference for a guardianship system over the comfort and solace her family could offer.
"I don't know. I do know that this system is broken. I hope that at some point, Wendy becomes strong enough where she can speak on her own behalf," concluded Williams' family in their statement to PEOPLE.
Williams' Ex-Husband's Severance Payment Dispute With Her Guardian
Morrissey is performing excellently at her job of fiercely protecting Williams, and as proof of that, she demanded her estranged husband return $112k to the show host account back in April.
Per The Blast, Morrissey explained in her filing that Kevin Hunter was paid that amount for three months, indicating excess severance payment, which made him "unjustly enriched "by Williams' bank.
The flaw needed to be corrected because "Wendy Williams Show" stopped paying the former host in October 2021, and Hunter received payment till January 2022 due to a possible autopay prompt put in place by Williams' bank.
She continued that the payment defaulted the express terms of the estranged couple's settlement agreement, which stated that payments would stop if her income was reduced to less than double her then-yearly income as of February 2020.
Morrissey confirmed that Hunter has thus interfered with the 60-year-old's right of possession to those funds by holding on to the overpaid balance.
Williams' guardian did not stop there, she also demanded that Hunter pay back interest gained on the fee, adding that the court placed a gag order on him to prevent him from talking to the press or anyone about their legal proceedings.
Hunter And Williams Dissolved Their Union In 2020
The couple, who were married for 21 years, ended their marriage in 2020 after Williams filed for divorce in 2019, claiming irreconcilable differences caused their split.
The filing also clashed with the birth of Hunter's daughter with his mistress, Sharina Hudson, which we believe the news of her pregnancy may have contributed to the decline of their marriage.
Williams reportedly paid Hunter a huge sum of money in divorce settlement and a severance payment after she had previously doled out $250,000 to assist her ex-husband in finding a new apartment.
Wendy Williams' Guardian Alleged A&E Television Networks Of Exploitation
Not only did Morrissey move to stop the unnecessary flow of money from Williams' account, but she also filed a lawsuit to block the broadcast of the "Where is Wendy Williams" documentary.
The unsealed lawsuit claimed that A&E Television Networks, a subsidiary of Lifetime, "shamelessly" took advantage of a vulnerable Williams and portrayed her "in an extremely demeaning and undignified manner."
The Blast reported that Morrissey affirmed that due to her health issues, Williams lacked the capacity to consent to the terms of the documentary contract, and she remained in that condition,
However, Morrissey clarified that she initially permitted the docuseries to proceed with filming under the condition that the project would only advance after a review and approval from herself and the court.
However, the documentary's trailer horrified her and was a direct violation of their initial promise to depict Williams positively.
Here's to better days and longer years to the iconic Wendy Williams!