For other people, see Wendy Williams (disambiguation).
Wendy Williams
Birth nameWendy Joan Williams
Birth dateJuly 18, 1964 (age 62)
Birth placeAsbury Park, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationBroadcaster · media personality · writer
Years active1986–2023[1]
EducationNortheastern University (BA)
Other namesWendy Williams Hunter[a]
Spouse
  • Bert Girigorie (m. 1994; div. 1995)
  • Kevin Hunter (m. 1999; div. 2020)[b]
Television

Wendy Williams Hunter[a] (; born July 18, 1964) is an American former broadcaster, media personality and author. Williams began her career as a radio DJ and quickly became known as a shock jock in New York City. She gained notoriety for her confrontational interviews of celebrities. The VH1 reality series The Wendy Williams Experience broadcast events surrounding her radio show in 2006. From 2008 to 2021, she hosted the nationally syndicated television talk show The Wendy Williams Show.

Williams was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2009. On her 50th birthday, the council of Asbury Park, New Jersey, renamed the street on which she grew up to Wendy Williams Way. Her other endeavors include authoring several books, appearances in various films and television shows and touring her stand-up comedy show.[2][3] She has also created a fashion line, a wig line and a jewelry collection.

Due to health complications, Williams retired from hosting The Wendy Williams Show in 2021. She was placed under a guardianship one year later and was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia in 2023.[4] Williams' legal counsel began litigation against the guardianship in December 2025 after the findings of a court-ordered medical evaluation were released. In it, a neurologist diagnosed Williams with alcohol-related dementia, recommending that her guardianship be terminated as the findings did not indicate she was affected by a progressive form of aphasia or dementia.[5][6]

Early life

Wendy Joan Williams was born on July 18, 1964, in Asbury Park, New Jersey.[7] She is the second of three children born to Shirley () (1937–2020) and Thomas Dwayne Williams (1931–2026).[8] The couple had a combined three master's degrees;[9] Shirley was a special education teacher while Thomas was a teacher and school principal who in 1969 became the first black school administrator in Red Bank, New Jersey.[8][10] Following race riots in Asbury Park in 1970, the family moved to the predominantly white, middle income suburb of Wayside in Ocean Township, New Jersey.[9][11] They attended a Baptist church[12] and visited the town of Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, each summer.[13] As a child, doctors recommended Williams be medicated to control her hyperactivity.[14] She suffered from poor body image due to the diet her parents put her on after gaining weight in elementary school.[11] Williams was a Brownie in the Girl Scouts and volunteered as a candy striper.[13] Her parents believed she would become a nurse.[11]

Williams acted as an announcer at her younger brother's Little League Baseball games.[9] She graduated from Ocean Township High School in 1982 among four black students, ranking 360th in the class of 363.[7][11] Her academic performance contrasted with that of her older sister, who received a university scholarship at the age of 16.[15] As she was able to use "white" diction instead of African-American Vernacular English, Williams's white classmates considered her one of their own and freely used the word nigger around her.[11][16] She did not get along with the other black students and said their only commonality was smoking cannabis.[9][11] According to Williams, she did not listen to hip hop music and instead listened to rock bands like AC/DC because they were popular with her classmates.[14] Due to her suburban upbringing, Williams considers herself "a multicultural woman who happens to be Black".[15]

Williams attended Northeastern University in Boston with the intent of becoming a television anchor.[17][18] Less than a month after starting, she switched from television communications to radio because she could advance her career faster[18]—a move which her parents disapproved.[15] Williams graduated in 1986 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication and, to appease her parents, a minor in journalism.[17][19] She was a disc jockey for the college radio station, WRBB, where rapper LL Cool J was her first celebrity interviewee. As an intern for Matt Siegel at contemporary hit radio station WXKS-FM, Williams recapped the soap operas Dallas and Dynasty on air.[7][11] In 2021, Williams revealed that she was date raped while in college by R&B singer Sherrick.[20]

Media career

1986–1994: Career beginnings, WQHT, and WRKS

Two weeks after graduating from Northeastern, Williams began her career as a disc jockey working for the small, calypso and reggae-oriented WVIS in Frederiksted, U.S. Virgin Islands,[17][21][22] but disliked the role because she did not learn as much about radio from her colleagues as she expected.[18] Due to low pay and isolation from her family, Williams began sending resumes and demo tapes of herself to other radio stations.[17][18] She left WVIS after eight months and obtained a position at Washington, D.C.'s WOL, but found its oldies radio format incompatible with her personality.[18][22] Williams continued sending tapes to other stations and on November 1, 1987, began as a weekend fill-in on New York City's WQHT.[18] After the urban contemporary station hired her full-time to work overnight shifts, she left WOL.[7][18]

Williams was fired from WQHT after two years[23] and briefly worked overnight shifts at WPLJ before being hired by WRKS.[24] Initially working as a fill-in, WRKS gave Williams a non-compete clause and permanent morning position in May 1990 after WBLS began poaching its employees.[21][25] She joined Jeff Foxx and Spider Webb as part of the station's "Wake-Up Club".[11][25] There, Williams began gossiping about rappers and celebrities during a segment called "Dish the Dirt". Those she talked about, such as Bill Cosby and Russell Simmons, called the station and (unsuccessfully) demanded she be fired.[11] As she grew into a popular radio personality, WRKS moved Williams to host the evening drive time slot in April 1991.[11][26] By 1993, she was the highest-rated host in her time slot in the New York City market[14][23] and received a Billboard Radio Award for R&B Major Market Radio Air Personality of the Year.[27]

Williams co-hosted American Urban Radio Networks' syndicated Top 30 USA song countdown program in 1993 and USA Music Magazine in 1994.[28][29] By mid-1994, WRKS had suffered a ratings decline amid competition from hip hop-oriented WQHT, which was owned by Emmis Broadcasting. In an effort to reverse the trend, WRKS moved Williams back to mornings on September 26, 1994, where she hosted a program titled "Wendy and Company".[30][31] However, Emmis purchased WRKS less than three months later and transferred Williams to WQHT, where she began hosting the evening drive time slot on December 12, 1994. As WRKS was reformatted into an urban adult contemporary outlet geared toward older audiences, they believed Williams would better reflect WQHT's younger demographic.[31][32]

1994–2001: WQHT, website, move to WUSL

By this time, Williams attended parties to gain information which she would report on air in addition to reading tabloid newspapers.[11] She continued gossip segments and gave relationship advice to teenage girls during "Ask Wendy". Williams's ratings increased dramatically after she read aloud a magazine article about an anonymous rapper confessing to being gay.[33] She became known for speculating about his identity[11] and spread rumors that there was not one, but multiple gay rappers who were not open about their sexuality.[34] Among her insinuations was that Tupac Shakur was raped in prison, which he denied.[11][35] Williams employed the term "pinky's up" when alleging someone was gay and regularly used the slur faggot, which she considered to be inoffensive.[33] Her comments contributed to an increase of homophobia in hip hop culture.[34]

Williams created a website, www.gowendy.com, as an offshoot of her radio program. Featuring photos and rumors of celebrities, it received up to 100,000 views per day.[33] In April 1997, WQHT suspended Williams for one week after mentioning her website on air, which displayed a doctored image of Bad Boy Records executive Sean Combs naked from the waist down having sex with another man.[33][35][36] The station suspended Williams again in September 1997 for online comments insinuating that her colleague Angie Martinez's boyfriend Q-Tip was gay.[11][33] Upon her return after deleting the post a month later, Williams called the Bad Boy Records girl group Total "broke hoes" after their comments favoring her suspension. WQHT permanently removed Williams, and her fans protested outside of their offices. By this time, Williams had received more than 50 letters from the station regarding her "lack of good judgment". She speculated her removal was due to pressure from music industry executives and stood by her comments, stating: "I stopped caring about artists when I realized it's more lucrative to talk about them than with them."[33]

She was fired from Hot 97 in 1998.[9] Williams was hired by a Philadelphia urban station, WUSL ("Power 99FM"). She was very open about her personal life on air, discussing her miscarriages, breast enhancement surgery,[9] and former drug addiction.[37] She helped the station move from 14th place in the ratings to 2nd.[9]

2001–2008: WBLS

In 2001, Williams returned to the New York airwaves when WBLS hired her full-time for a syndicated 2–6 p.m. time slot. Williams' friend, MC Spice of Boston, offered his voiceover services to the show, often adding short rap verses tailored specifically for Williams' show. The New York Times stated that her "show works best when its elements – confessional paired with snarkiness – are conflated".[38] By 2008, she was syndicated in Redondo Beach, California; Shreveport, Louisiana; Wilmington, Delaware; Toledo, Ohio; Columbia, South Carolina; Emporia, Virginia; Lake Charles, Louisiana; Tyler, Texas; and Alexandria, Louisiana, among other markets.[citation needed] Williams left her radio show in 2009 to focus on her television program and spend more time with her family.

Media outlets have described Williams's 2003 interview with Whitney Houston as her most infamous. After Williams asked Houston about her marriage and breast implants, they began a shouting match and Houston said she would have fought Williams if she were younger.[13][39][15] In a later interview with Williams, Houston's confidant Robyn Crawford said they planned to confront Williams years earlier after she talked about Houston and her relationship with Crawford on air.[40] Wu-Tang Clan performer Method Man had a personal and publicized conflict with Williams in 2006 after she revealed details about his wife's cancer diagnosis.[41][42]

2008–2016: Breakthrough with The Wendy Williams Show

In 2008, Debmar-Mercury offered Williams a six-week television trial of her own talk show. A syndicated daytime talk show hosted by Williams titled Wendy's World was poised to debut in fall 1997, but never aired.[43] On July 14, 2008, Williams debuted her daytime talk show, The Wendy Williams Show, in four cities during the summer of 2008. During the tryout, The New York Times remarked that the show created a "breakthrough in daytime" by introducing the genre of the "backtalk show".[44] After a successful run, Fox signed a deal with Debmar-Mercury to broadcast the show nationally on their stations beginning in July 2009. In addition, BET picked up cable rights to broadcast the show at night. In 2010, BET started airing the show internationally in 54 countries through BET International.[45] The show attracted 2.4 million daily viewers on average, with Williams trading off daily with Ellen DeGeneres as the number one female host on daytime television.[46]

Williams hosted a game show for GSN called Love Triangle (2011) for which she and her husband Kevin Hunter served as executive producers.[47] Williams played a judge on the Lifetime network show Drop Dead Diva (2011) and served as a guest judge on The Face (2013).[48] Williams was paired with Tony Dovolani as a contestant on the twelfth season of Dancing with the Stars; she was eliminated second. Williams later alleged the show's producers portrayed her as an angry black woman, a racial stereotype.[49] Williams appeared in the film adaptation of Steve Harvey's book, Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man, titled Think Like a Man (2012), and its sequel, Think Like a Man Too (2014). In 2012, it was announced Williams would enter into a "production alliance" with producers Suzanne de Passe and Madison Jones to create movies and television shows aimed at multicultural audiences.[50][51] These projects will appear under the heading "Wendy Williams presents"[51] and their first project will be VH1 adaptation of a Star Jones novel.[50]

In February 2013, it was announced that Williams and her husband and manager, Kevin, were launching a reality television production company, Wendy Williams Productions.[52] that will produce unscripted content, including reality television and game shows.[53] Williams was an executive producer on the show Celebrities Undercover (2014).[48] Williams also executive produced a biographical film for Lifetime, Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B, which premiered on November 15, 2014.[54] The film attracted controversy due to its casting and depiction of Aaliyah's relationship with R. Kelly.[55] and received predominantly negative reviews from critics.[56] In September 2015, the documentary series Death By Gossip with Wendy Williams premiered on the Investigation Discovery channel, both hosted and produced by Williams.[57] In 2013, Williams was cast to play the role of Matron "Mama" Morton on the Broadway musical Chicago.[58][59] She began her tenure on July 2[60] and finished her seven-week run on August 11, 2013. Her preparations for the musical were documented in the TV Guide docuseries Wendy Williams: How You Doin', Broadway?!,[61] which was produced by her own production company, Wendy Williams Productions.[62]

Williams was accused of victim blaming singer Kesha in 2016 after questioning why she did not film the alleged sexual abuse by record producer Dr. Luke against her.[63][64] Williams later apologized for the remarks and stated "unfortunately a lot of people lie about rape so I was just being skeptical".[65]

2017–2021: Personal and professional issues, end of talk show

Williams's health issues caused her to take multiple hiatuses from hosting her show, including three weeks in 2018 and six weeks in 2019.[66][67]

During this time, Williams received criticism for several remarks she made on her show. In January 2018, Williams was criticized by activist Tarana Burke after saying an alleged 14-year-old sexual assault victim of R. Kelly gave him consent and that she was tired of the #MeToo movement.[68] Williams stood by her comments, saying "I feel like I know things about R. Kelly that he's told me himself that I promised I would keep in confidence."[68] While talking about actor Joaquin Phoenix in January 2020, Williams used her finger to pull up a part of her lip to resemble a cleft palate, which Phoenix denies having. Although Williams said she found it attractive, critics claimed that it appeared as if she was mocking him. After a Change.org petition in favor of firing her garnered over 70,000 signatures, Williams apologized on Twitter and her show donated to cleft palate charities.[69][70] The following month, Williams was criticized for making homophobic comments. While talking about the fictional holiday "Galentine's Day", she criticized gay men for wearing skirts and high heels and falsely assumed they aspire to be women. Williams later apologized for her remarks.[71] While talking about the murder of Amie Harwick shortly thereafter, Williams made a joke referring to Harwick's ex-fiancé Drew Carey and his job on The Price Is Right, saying that show's catchphrase, "Come on down!", in response to news that Harwick was thrown to her death.[72]

Williams hosted her show remotely from March to May 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, after which she took a hiatus due to fatigue caused by Graves' disease. She returned to a studio broadcast in September of that year.[73] The next month, Williams competed in season four of The Masked Singer as "Lips" where she was mostly sitting on something due to the weight of the costume and was eliminated after her first appearance.[74]

In July 2021, Williams received criticism for her tone while covering the murder of 19-year-old TikTok star Swavy. After comparing their social media followers, Williams said, "I have no idea who this is", and casually informed her studio audience of his death.[75][76] Williams did not return to her show after that month due to health issues; guests hosted in her absence.[77][78] She tested positive for a breakthrough infection of COVID-19 in September 2021.[79]

Production of The Wendy Williams Show concluded in 2022 due to Williams's ongoing health issues.[78]

Other ventures

Authorship

Williams is the author of three non-fiction books. She released an autobiography co-written with New York Daily News journalist Karen Hunter in August 2003 titled Wendy's Got the Heat. It focuses on her life, including childhood troubles, drug addiction, and marriages.[80][81] Published by Atria, it debuted at number nine on The New York Times Best Seller list for nonfiction.[82] The autobiography was reprinted in paperback in August 2004,[83] a month before the debut of Williams' second book, The Wendy Williams Experience, which contains celebrity gossip and interviews.[84][85] In May 2013, Williams released an advice book, Ask Wendy.[86] Over the years, Williams wrote columns for Honey and Life & Style magazines.[86][87]

Williams has also written several fiction books, including a trilogy about the life and career of radio shock jock Ritz Harper. She co-authored the first two novels, Drama Is Her Middle Name (2006) and Is the Bitch Dead, or What? (2007), with Hunter.[88][89][90] Zondra Hughes co-wrote the third installment Ritz Harper Goes to Hollywood! (2009).[91][92] Media outlets considered Ritz Harper similar to Williams.[93][94] In 2014, Williams released a romance novel, Hold Me in Contempt.[95] She said it was co-authored with an English professor ghostwriter.[96]

Music and comedy

Williams interviewed Blu Cantrell in 2003; the conversation was released as a DVD on the singer's album Bittersweet.[21] Williams and Virgin Records released a compilation album, Wendy Williams Brings the Heat: Volume 1, in June 2005 featuring various rap acts, including M.O.P., Jadakiss, and Young Jeezy.[97] It sold 29,000 copies by November of that year according to Nielsen SoundScan.[98]

In 2014, Lipshtick called Williams to participate in their first all-female-based comedy series at the Venetian in Las Vegas. Williams made her sold-out comedy debut on July 11, 2014.[2] Williams' comedy tour was called "The Sit-down Comedy Tour". Williams returned to Lipshtick on October 31, 2014, and November 1, 2014, after she made a sold-out debut in July.[99] Williams hosted her "How You Laughin'" Comedy Series at NJPAC on November 15, 2014, featuring Luenell, Jonathan Martin, Pat Brown, Hadiyah Robinson, and Meme Simpson.[100] In 2015, Williams announced a 12-city comedy tour called "The Wendy Williams Sit Down Tour: Too Real For Stand-Up."[101]

Philanthropy and activism

In 2005, Williams funded a $1,000 scholarship for a black female high school student who sought to major in communications in college.[102] Subsequent recipients in 2006 and 2007 also received internships at WBLS.[103][104] She led an effort to donate money and school supplies to Asbury Park Middle School in 2009.[105] Williams is pro-choice for abortion.[106]

Following the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in 2012, Williams visited her hometown of Asbury Park and paid for the hot meals of 300 people, face painting, and balloon animals for children.[107] She supported Barack Obama in that year's presidential election,[108] and promoted an NAACP voter helpline.[109] Williams posed for PETA's "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign in 2012, stating "we should all try to be comfortable in our own skin and let the animals keep theirs."[110] Williams also headlined during Philly Pride that year.[111]

In 2013, she participated in The Heart Truth fashion show to raise awareness for women's breast cancer.[112][113] Williams supported the 2015 removal of the Confederate battle flag from the South Carolina State House.[114] In 2018, she promoted Be Here (behere.org) while on a 10-city tour with a goal to raise $10 million in 5 years for drug and substance abuse victims.[115][116] Williams attended Los Angeles Pride in June 2019 with Blac Chyna, and rode on a float in July at the WorldPride parade in New York.[117][118][119] In September, Williams became an ambassador and honorary board member of the Lymphatic Education & Research Network.[120]

The Hunter Foundation

Williams and her ex-husband created The Hunter Foundation in 2014, a non-profit organization that funded anti-poverty programs and provided resources to people as they transitioned from drug addiction to recovery.[121][122] During the Holiday season in 2016, the couple hosted dinners for over 1000 for those in need through the foundation.[12] In 2017, the organization donated $1000 for the opening of an emergency food pantry.[16] In 2018, the organization paid for a student's college tuition. During March 2019, The Hunter Foundation launched a 24/7 national hotline, 1-888-5HUNTER, for those struggling with addiction.[123] The Foundation was dissolved following Williams' divorce from Hunter in May 2019. Following the dissolution, Williams partnered with SNAX-Sational Brands and Operation Backpack with the objective to raise funds to provide backpacks filled with various school supplies for children in New York homeless and domestic violence shelters.[10][121]

Products and endorsements

While working for WRKS, Williams was a spokesperson for a hip-hop clothing brand.[14] In 2006, she became a spokesperson for George Veselles champagne and Alizé liqueurs.[21] Williams debuted a jewelry and shoe line on shopping channel QVC called "Adorn" in 2012.[108][124] Williams' started a "Save the Twinkie" campaign amidst the parent company's filing for bankruptcy, setting up a Facebook page and promoting the snack on The Wendy Williams Show.[30] The shoe manufacturer's lawyer alleged she never paid the production cost.[125] In 2013, Williams released a wig collection to online retailers.[126] She sold a self-titled clothing line in 2015 on shopping channel HSN and continued the partnership the following year by releasing shoe and winter clothing collections.[127][128][129]

Personal life

In 1994, Williams married her first husband, Bertrand "Bert" Girigorie.[130][131][132] She said they separated after five months and divorced about 18 months later.[133] Williams met her second husband, Kevin Hunter, in 1994;[11] they married on November 30, 1999.[b] Her husband became her agent.[9] She suffered multiple miscarriages before giving birth to their son in August 2000.[15] In April 2019, Williams filed for divorce due to irreconcilable differences[134][135] after Hunter fathered a baby with a mistress.[11] Although the divorce was finalized in January 2020,[136] her legal surname remains Hunter.[137]

Health issues

Williams has been open about her cocaine addiction in the late 1980s and early 1990s, for which she never received treatment.[138][139]

In late October 2017, Williams fainted during a live broadcast of her show from dehydration.[140] Williams was often in the news for the next two years because of her health issues and relationship with Hunter.[141] In February 2018, Williams disclosed that she has Graves' disease which causes hyperthyroidism,[142] conditions she had been diagnosed with nearly two decades prior.[143] Due to the increased pressure behind her eyes, they sometimes have a pronounced bulging appearance.[142] Williams wears wigs in public because her thyroid condition thins her natural hair.[11] She fractured her shoulder in December 2018.[139] In March 2019, Williams said she had been living in a sober house "for some time"[139] and that she has vertigo.[144] Later that year, Williams revealed she had been diagnosed with lymphedema, a condition that causes swelling in her ankles.[145]

Dementia diagnosis and guardianship

In 2022, Lori Schiller, Williams' former financial advisor, froze her Wells Fargo bank accounts. Schiller requested a hearing from the New York Supreme Court to determine if Williams was legally incapacitated and in need of a temporary guardianship.[137] Williams denied these claims on her mental health. Sabrina Morrissey was appointed as Williams' temporary financial guardian by an unnamed judge in March 2022. After being confirmed in May, Morrissey remained in that position until July.[146] From September to October 2022, Williams stayed in a long-term care facility to receive treatment for her health issues. She returned to the public eye in November and prepared to launch a podcast. However, it was not released to the public.[147]

In 2023, Williams was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia and was booked into a long-term care facility by Morrissey, who had been appointed as Williams' legal guardian.[4] A documentary chronicling Williams's life from August 2022 to April 2023, Where Is Wendy Williams?, aired on Lifetime in February 2024.[148] Morrissey unsuccessfully sued to prevent its release, claiming the documentary exploited Williams.[149][150]

Legal documents filed by Morrissey issued in November 2024 described Williams as "cognitively impaired, permanently disabled and legally incapacitated."[151] Williams denied these claims in an appearance on the radio show The Breakfast Club in January 2025. She likened her experience to "emotional abuse" and criticized the restrictions placed upon her by the terms of the guardianship.[152] Her niece, Alex Finnie, appeared on the show to express support for Williams and disputed that she was legally incapacitated.[153] Finnie encouraged people to use the hashtag #FreeWendy or donate to a GoFundMe account she set up for Williams.[154] In February, Williams was interviewed by Nightline co-host Byron Pitts. In the interview, she explained she was placed in a unit specialising in treating memory difficulties and criticized this decision.[155] In March, Williams received a cognitive test at a hospital to assess the necessity of the guardianship. Williams scored full marks on the test.[156] On March 10, a placard was displayed from the long-term care facility where Williams was staying that read "Help! Wendy!!".[157] Two days after the incident, Williams appeared on The View to discuss her case, stating that she had quit using alcohol.[158]

In June 2025, it was reported that Williams' ex-husband, Kevin Hunter, filed a lawsuit on behalf of Williams against Morrissey and the unnamed judge on June 18. Hunter accused them of committing abuse, fraud and neglect against Williams through the guardianship.[159] In December, Joe Tacopina, Williams' attorney, stated that Dr. Samuel E. Gandy, a neurologist who had been appointed to carry out an evaluation of Williams, diagnosed her with alcohol-related dementia. In light of this, Gandy recommended Williams' guardianship to be terminated on the grounds that her results were not consistent with that of a person with a progressive form of aphasia or frontotemporal dementia.[5] Tacopina claimed that the case for terminating Williams' guardianship would have been successfully made by her legal counsel and accepted by the end of 2025.[160] As of April 2026, Williams' legal counsel are still engaged in litigation concerning the termination of the guardianship.[6]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2004The CookoutReporter #2
2011The Cookout 2Herself
2012Think Like a ManGail
2013World War ZHerself
2014Think Like a Man TooGail
Santa ConPastor RuthTV movie
2016Ice Age: The Great Egg-ScapadeCondor Mom (voice)TV movie
Mike and Dave Need Wedding DatesHerself
2018Homegrown ChristmasHerselfTV movie

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1992MartinHerselfEpisode: "Radio Days"
1995New York UndercoverWGHT DJEpisode: "You Get No Respect"
2006The Wendy Williams ExperienceHerself/HostMain Host
2007Dice: UndisputedHerselfEpisode: "Dice Back on TV: It's Showtime?"
2008–21The Wendy Williams ShowHerself/HostMain Host
2009BiographyHerselfEpisode: "Boyz II Men"
2010BBC BreakfastHerself/Chat Show HostEpisode: "June 10, 2010"
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-ListHerselfEpisode: "Kathy's Smear Campaign"
Bret Michaels: Life as I Know ItHerselfEpisode: "Episode 3"
2010–11The A-List: New YorkHerself/HostMain Host
2010–12Bethenny Ever AfterHerselfGuest Cast: Season 1 & 3
2011One Life to LivePhyllis RoseRegular Cast
Drop Dead DivaJudge Mary RuddEpisode: "Hit and Run"
Dancing with the StarsHerself/ContestantContestant: Season 12
Love TriangleHerself/HostMain Host
Braxton Family ValuesHerself/HostEpisode: "Braxton Family Reunion"
Mob WivesHerself/HostEpisode: "Reunion Special"
201230 RockHerselfEpisode: "My Whole Life Is Thunder"
Sesame StreetHerselfEpisode: "Afraid of the Bark"
Tamar & VinceHerselfEpisode: "Are You Ready for Tamar?!?"
2013Home by NovogratzHerselfEpisode: "Wendy Williams Audience"
The FaceHerselfEpisode: "Red Carpet Ready?"
Law & Order: Special Victims UnitHerselfEpisode: "Funny Valentine"
Belle'sHerselfEpisode: "Runaway Bride"
The NeighborsShirleyEpisode: "The One with Interspecies F-R-I-E-N-D-S"
2014Trisha's Southern KitchenHerselfEpisode: "Straight Up Comfort Food"
The KitchenHerselfEpisode: "The Chicken Rotisserie Show"
Hell's KitchenHerself/Restaurant PatronEpisode: "16 Chefs Compete"
Soul Train Music AwardsHerself/HostMain Host
2015American MastersHerselfEpisode: "The Women's List"
Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick HarrisHerselfEpisode: "Reba"
Death by Gossip with Wendy WilliamsHerself/HostMain Host
2016The Dr. Oz ShowHerself/Guest Co-HostEpisode: "Episode #7.93"
The Nightly Show with Larry WilmoreHerself/PanelistEpisode: "North Korean Satellite & Realistic Barbie"
2017NightcapHerselfEpisode: "Go-Fund Yourself"
Odd Mom OutHerselfEpisode: "Blood Bath"
Wild 'n OutHerself/Team CaptainEpisode: "Wendy Williams/Blac Youngsta"
2018The ViewHerself/Guest Co-HostEpisode: "Episode #21.81"
Saturday Night LiveHerselfEpisode: "Adam Driver/Kanye West"
2019Surviving R. KellyHerselfMain Guest: Season 1
Project Runway All StarsHerself/Guest JudgeEpisode: "Pedal to the Medal"
2020The Real Housewives of AtlantaHerselfRecurring Cast: Season 12
The Masked SingerHerself/LipsContestant: Season 4
2021That Damn Michael CheHerselfEpisode: "Only Built 4 Leather Suits"
2024Where Is Wendy Williams?HerselfMain Cast
2025IMPACT x Nightline: What's Happening with Wendy Williams?HerselfEpisode: "IMPACT x Nightline: What's Happening with Wendy Williams?"

Documentary

YearTitle
2009Kiss and Tail: The Hollywood Jumpoff
2018Fahrenheit 11/9
2021Wendy Williams: What a Mess!
You're Watching Video Music Box
2025TMZ Presents: Saving Wendy
Trapped: What Is Happening to Wendy Williams?

Accolades

AwardYearCategoryNomineeResultRef(s)
Billboard Radio Award1993R&B Major Market Radio Air Personality of the YearHerselfstyle=text-align:center;"| [27]
Daytime Emmy Award2015Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Hoststyle=text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| [161]
Outstanding Talk Show EntertainmentThe Wendy Williams Show
2016Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show HostHerselfstyle=text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| [162]
Outstanding Talk Show EntertainmentThe Wendy Williams Show
2017Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show HostHerselfstyle=text-align:center;"| [163]
2019Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Hoststyle=text-align:center;"| [164]
Hollywood Walk of Fame2019style=text-align:center;"| [165]
NAACP Image Award2012Outstanding Talk SeriesThe Wendy Williams Showstyle=text-align:center;"| [166]
2015style=text-align:center;"| [167]
2016style=text-align:center;"| [168]
National Radio Hall of Fame2009Herselfstyle=text-align:center;"| [165]
People's Choice Award2016Favorite Daytime TV Hoststyle=text-align:center;"| [169]
2019The Daytime Talk Show of 2019The Wendy Williams Showstyle=text-align:center;"| [170]
2020The Daytime Talk Show of 2020style=text-align:center;"| [171]
Radio & Records Industry Achievement Award1999Urban Personality of the YearHerselfstyle=text-align:center;"| [172]
2000style=text-align:center;"| [173]
2002Urban Personality/Show of the Yearstyle=text-align:center;"| [174][175]
2003style=text-align:center;"| [176][177]
2004style=text-align:center;"| [178][179]
2006Urban AC Personality/Show of the Yearstyle=text-align:center;"| [180]
2007style=text-align:center;"| [181]
2008style=text-align:center;"| [182][183]

Bibliography

Nonfiction

Fiction

References

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Works cited

  • Williams, Wendy & Hunter, Karen (2003). Wendy's Got the Heat. 1st ed. Atria Books. ISBN 0-7434-7021-4. LCCN 2004297853. OCLC 52724929
  1. ^ Sources have used both Wendy Williams Hunter and simply Wendy Hunter as Williams' legal name.[137][184][185]
  2. ^ Sources differ regarding the year of Williams' marriage to Hunter. While some publications give 1997,[185][7] her divorce filing lists 1999.[134][135]