Movies

Wendy Williams’s life: What’s REALLY going on?

BBG News

According to reports, Wendy Williams’ closest confidante has spoken out against what they consider to be controlling management of Wendy, as she was recently taken to a hospital in New York for a cognitive assessment.

59-year-old Regina Schell, a lifelong friend of Williams, has expressed concerns about the strict restrictions placed on her friend, as shared in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail. Following the cancellation of her talk show in 2022, the TV personality found herself residing in an assisted living facility due to health complications.

On Monday, events took an unexpected turn as Williams, 60, who has consistently refuted accusations of cognitive impairment and insists she is not being unlawfully detained, was observed being escorted to the hospital. This development followed after the celebrity sent a note of distress down to photographers from her fifth-floor residence.

According to Schell’s statement to The Daily Mail, she expresses concern that Williams might have been exploited ever since Sabrina Morrissey, a lawyer from New York, took on her guardianship role.

Schell acknowledges that she was acquainted with Williams, whom she hasn’t communicated with for almost two years, boasted a fortune of $55 million in 2022. However, the celebrity recently confided to radio host Charlamagne tha God in an interview that her financial situation has drastically changed and she is left with only $15.

To support her statement, Schell presented an affidavit to a New Jersey court, stating that she was informed by Williams’ previous publicist about having overheard a discussion. In this conversation, it was reportedly indicated that the former popular television host had run out of wealth.

‘She would never fritter away her millions,’ Schell told the Daily Mail. 

In October, Kevin Hunter, Williams’ former spouse, requested the cancellation of their divorce on the grounds that she allegedly hid approximately $48 million during their settlement negotiations.

In 2022, Schell disclosed to the Mail that he had viewed a bank statement indicating she had $55 million. He subsequently submitted an affidavit about this in court, as her husband, despite appearing unkind, recognizes the situation regarding Wendy’s inheritance and their attempts to misrepresent her.

When Schell phoned Morrissey, the designated guardian, to seek clarity on Williams’s financial status, she asserted that their long-standing friendship abruptly ended, with her being completely cut off by him.

According to the attorney representing The Guardian, Morrissey follows directives from the court and listens to medical professionals. Essentially, her job is to safeguard Ms. Williams’s physical and mental well-being, as well as her financial resources, within those boundaries.

Last year, it became known that Williams was diagnosed with Frontotemporal Dementia and Aphasia in the year 2023.

Because of her diagnosis she was declared ‘permanently incapacitated’ by the court in August 2024.

Later, images surfaced that alarmed fans as they showed Williams repeatedly tapping on the glass at the New York retirement home where she now resides.

After an incident involving alleged intoxication at a boozy brunch last month, she was subsequently transferred to the memory care section of her senior living community in New York.

On the exceptional occasion of chatting with Charlamagne on his Breakfast Club radio show back on January 16th, I passionately asserted, “I might not be cognitively impaired, but I often feel as if I’m trapped behind bars.

Williams asserted that her cats had departed, and she found herself unable to exit from the place where she was being confined.

Williams, 60, stated, “My life is a mess right now.” He continued, “I feel trapped, alone, and secluded. I mostly stay indoors, watching television, listening to the radio, and peering out the window. Life seems to pass me by as I remain here.

Sabrina Morrissey’s legal representative told The Daily Mail that ‘Ms. Williams lives in an assisted living center offering various activities, classes, spa services, a gym, round-the-clock medical care, delicious meals, a dining room, and outdoor terraces. Ms. Williams is free to leave the facility, which she often does for shopping trips, meals, or medical check-ups; however, she usually needs a personal assistant and security escort.’

As a devoted admirer, I find myself in an intriguing environment filled with individuals well into their golden years – the nineties, eighties, even seventies. Yet, there seems to be an unusual atmosphere on this particular floor that I can’t quite put my finger on.

She said she has spent her last three birthdays alone. 

‘This is referred to as emotional abuse. They prevent you from leaving or having visitors, which means you can’t go for a walk, take a trip, or visit relatives. It’s uncertain if I’ll be able to see my father on his 94th birthday,’ she expressed tearfully.

As an ardent admirer, I can’t help but share my concerns about Williams, the captivating subject of the February TMZ documentary ‘Saving Wendy’. Recently, during a private conversation with TMZ journalist Harvey Levin, he disclosed that there appears to be restrictions in place, preventing her from receiving visitors and making phone calls. This revelation has left me deeply worried about her well-being.

However, Morrissey’s legal representative asserts that Williams has never been barred from contacting her family. She is free to reach out to them at any time, and in fact, they reconnected towards the end of last year.

‘The guardian has never denied Ms Williams access to her family members,’ the lawyer stated.

Due to the chaos in Wendy Williams’ financial situation, her relatives have established a ‘Stand with Wendy Williams: Struggling for Freedom’ GoFundMe campaign to cover legal expenses.

The page, run by her niece Alex Finnie, has raised $47,070 – 94 percent of the $50,000 target.

Finnie wrote that for a prolonged period, Wendy has encountered difficulties due to an unfair guardianship situation and being misjudged as incapacitated, yet she possesses a robust spirit and ambition to live life autonomously.

The court has been in charge of the TV legend’s finances for the past two years. 

Last December marked the long-awaited reunion of Williams with her family in Florida, after more than a year apart. Recently, she was observed seated in a vehicle outside Sista Sara’s Sho’Nuff Oysters eatery in Fort Lauderdale, accompanied by her nephew Travis Finnie.

The team was seen on video collecting a meal of fried oysters, while a composed Williams acknowledged the staff and even greeted an admirer, contradicting Morrissey’s assertions about her mental decline.

Additionally, it was noted that Williams herself was present at the college graduation ceremony of her son, Kevin Jr., which took place at Florida International University on December 19th.

From her residence in Los Angeles, Schell, who spent two decades as a fashion model, opined: ‘Wendy seems to have been given permission to travel to Florida, possibly to visit relatives since quite a few of them reside there.’

‘There seemed to be an overabundance of guards around her, and it strikes me as somewhat artificial. Frankly, this video doesn’t completely convince me that she is alright. If she were truly free to make choices, she would reach out to me. Honestly, the situation reeks a bit. I just want my friend to be safe.’

According to Schell, Williams’s immediate family, such as her ex-husband Kevin Hunter and their son Kevin Jr., are often uninformed about her health situation for a significant portion of her guardianship.

Schell clarified, ‘They are presenting a story suggesting she was uncontrollable, but there’s no evidence supporting this claim.’

According to Schell, Hunter appears sincerely concerned about his ex-wife’s well-being, suggesting they share a common goal when advocating for relaxing the current guardianship, despite the possibility that his motives might be driven primarily by financial considerations.

The hunter is seeking to reverse the terms of their divorce from January 2020, following the cessation of his alimony payments by Morrissey, who became his temporary financial manager upon her appointment in May 2022.

According to Hunter, when they parted ways in April 2019, he was informed by Wendy that she only had $7 million. However, he now alleges that $48 million was hidden from him during their divorce proceedings and is seeking to overturn the original judgement, claiming it was based on false financial information.

In a heart-wrenching Lifetime documentary, I got an up-close and personal look at the trials and tribulations that Wendy faced, and I couldn’t help but feel deeply moved and captivated by her story. As a devoted fan, it was truly awe-inspiring to see Kevin Jr take on the role of executive producer for this powerful production.

Schell concurred with Morrissey’s view that Wendy likely wouldn’t have consented to the filming had she been lucid or fully aware.

Morrissey has filed a lawsuit against A+E Networks, the parent company of Lifetime, alleging that they exploited Williams in their reality show, “Where is Wendy Williams?” by taking advantage of her.

The attorney stated that Lifetime earned a substantial sum of money from the documentary, but Wendy received only a small amount, roughly $82,000.

A+E Networks and Lifetime are asserting that Morrissey filed her lawsuit primarily for her own benefit, not with the intention of protecting genuine interests.

But Schell did not trust the way Williams was portrayed in the Lifetime documentary. 

In the documentary, piles of money were displayed. However, Williams always kept money hidden, she said. Similarly, alcohol bottles were absent from her table. By the time they began filming such scenes, I had already left. It was startling to see it. She never consumed alcohol or had it openly on her counters. I resided with her for a few months, and during that time, there was no sign of alcohol in plain sight on her countertops.

She never left her money out in the open. Her treasure chest of jewelry and wealth was always securely closed and hidden from view. Not once.

She consistently felt deeply connected to herself, and she never felt comfortable appearing on camera without wearing her wig. These behaviors strike me as odd given our history together, as they seem unlike anything she would normally do.

If your intention was to present her favorably and express care for her, that approach doesn’t seem appropriate. Is it reasonable to think Wendy would agree with this method?

Schell and Williams have been friends since high school in Ocean Township, New Jersey.

Due to the strong familiarity Schell has with Wendy, she expresses doubt about what she heard.

2018 saw Williams openly discussing her diagnosis of Graves’ Disease, an immune system disorder. In June 2022, she revealed that she had lost approximately 95% of the sensation in her swollen toes due to lymphedema, a blood-related condition. In May 2023, she was diagnosed with aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.

‘The deterioration in this is so quick – that’s what gets me,’ said Schell.

Schell understands that Dementia is a condition that worsens over time, but he finds it surprising how rapidly it seems to be progressing.

I’ve never witnessed her behaving as they claim she is, and it all seems rather fishy to me. There’s no one I know who has ever explicitly mentioned her having dementia.

In other words, there is a group that works behind the scenes, and they have informed us that she is suffering from dementia, but we have not had the opportunity to witness them directly. (Schell added.)

It’s troubling not knowing where she is, and her being with another woman raises serious concerns. After all, one can never be sure if she’s receiving proper meals, which makes the situation quite distressing.

The guardian’s lawyer says that Wendy is getting ‘excellent food’ and has access to a dining room.

Despite not having spoken for approximately two years, Schell continues to think Wendy might have tried reaching out to her through an unidentified number that often disconnects following a couple of rings.

It seems I frequently receive phone calls, and it’s been my experience that whenever she’s been admitted to rehab before, they usually confiscate her phone. However, she has a habit of getting her phone back somehow, and I’m often the first person she calls once she regains access.

For the past six months, I’ve been receiving calls from an unknown number. The call either rings fully or just gives a half-ring before disconnecting. I strongly suspect it might be her trying to reach me, but for some reason, she can’t complete the connection.

‘Given how frail she seems, wouldn’t it be more suitable to let her spend her remaining years peacefully and comfortably? If someone is beyond help, it makes no sense to keep them in an institution. There are many other options available for her care.’

Schell is determined to help her friend. ‘I won’t stop until I free Wendy,’ she said.

Read More

2025-03-12 00:23

Previous post Tokyo Ghoul character, Ken Kaneki, joins Dead by Daylight in new crossover
Next post Hannah Dal Sasso Dates Son of ‘Real Housewives’ Star Just Weeks After Ex Photo Scandal