Wendy Williams' guardian is suing Lifetime's parent company, A&E Television Networks, Lifetime Entertainment Services, EOne Productions, Creature Films and its executive producer Mark Ford, and claims the host made chump change in comparison to the money they allegedly made.
via: Page Six
Court docs obtained by Page Six and filed by guardian Sabrina E. Morrissey, claim Williams, 60, only made $82,000 to date while those who profited off her heartbreaking story likely made millions.
The complaint alleges that the networks along with producer Mark Ford and eOne Productions allegedly “profited immensely from their exploitation” of the former radio DJ for “Where Is Wendy Williams?,” which aired back in February.
Morrissey claims that despite filming “sessions on numerous occasions,” Williams has “personally received around $82,000.”
The two-part docuseries chronicled Williams’ declining health and alcoholism, all of which contributed to her being placed under a court-ordered guardianship in 2022.
“This is a paltry sum for the use of highly invasive, humiliating footage that portrayed her in the confusing throes of dementia, while defendants, who have profited on the streaming of the program have likely already earned millions,” the conservator further argues.
In the docuseries, Williams was incredibly vulnerable, often breaking down into tears on camera.
In one scene, the former “Wendy Williams Show” host cried over her finances, saying, “I have no money.”
Williams’ conservator argues that the host was already in a vulnerable mental state when she filmed.
In February, it was revealed that the iconic TV personality had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia as well as aphasia. A series of tests showed she had started to “lose words” and “act erratically.”
“Defendants not only deliberately destroyed her credibility and image, but they did so when she was incapacitated and unable to consent or avoid being filmed,” the new complaint alleges.
“Defendants have been unjustly enriched by millions of dollars, while cruelly exploiting [Williams’] illness.”
Williams’ team believes that the profits from the doc should go to the host, as she will “need significant funding to provide for proper medical care and supervision for the rest of her life.”
Morrissey has been opposed to the series from the start. The legal guardian attempted to halt the release of doc via a court order days before it was set to air.
Per the complaint, Williams has stacked up her legal team by hiring high powered civil rights attorney Roberta Kaplan and her partner Tim Martin, who represented E. Jean Carroll against Donald Trump.
“As our complaint shows in painful and excruciating detail, A&E, Lifetime and Mark Ford viciously and shamelessly exploited Wendy Williams for their own profit while she was obviously incapacitated and suffering from dementia,” Kaplan Martin LLP and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, attorneys for Wendy Williams’ guardian tell Page Six.
“Their behavior truly shocks the conscience, and they should not be permitted to profit from her suffering. We are proud to represent her guardian in holding them accountable.”
Page Six has reached out to reps for the defendant but did not immediately hear back.
Comments