More than a year since her last public appearance, concerns are growing over the whereabouts and well-being of former talk show host Wendy Williams. Regina Schell, Williams' best friend of 44 years, believes the outspoken star has been "forced into silence" and is demanding answers about her mysterious disappearance.
"Talking is Wendy's life, her whole claim to fame is talking, and I don't think she would be this quiet unless she was forced to be quiet," Schell told The Sun US. "Where is Wendy and why is no one asking that question? And why is no one answering that question?"
Williams, known for her candid and often controversial comments on celebrities during her tenure as host of The Wendy Williams Show, was last seen publicly in May 2023, several months after being diagnosed with aphasia. Her prolonged absence has raised suspicions among those close to her, including an insider who claims, "There is no way in hell that she would not have responded to that Lifetime documentary, with all her family members appearing in it. Wendy would have had something to say about all of that, without a doubt."
The Lifetime docuseries, titled "Where Is Wendy Williams?," aired in February and explored the star's battles with alcohol, health issues, cognitive decline, and the guardianship she has been under since early 2022. Schell, who lived with Williams throughout the summer of 2022, believes the star "should be surrounded by family and friends and people who love and support her, instead of some stranger who has her who knows where."
Williams' family members, including her sister Wanda, have expressed their frustration with being excluded from the star's life. "The people who love her cannot see her," Wanda told People magazine. "It's got a sinister vibe to it. That's what gets me. There's something about it that just doesn't feel right."
Schell also questioned the actions of Williams' court-appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, accusing her of neglecting the star's basic needs. "When I was in New York and staying with Wendy in the summer, I noticed when she would call... she had no access to her money," Schell told NewsNation host Chris Cuomo. "So, every time she had to do anything that she had to pay for, she had to go through the guardian."
According to Schell, the guardian would take hours to provide Williams with food, leading Schell to send supplies from Los Angeles to New York. "When I went back to Los Angeles, I would have to send her food from Los Angeles to New York from a delivery service, because she wasn't getting... the communication wasn't there," Schell claimed.
The circumstances surrounding Williams' guardianship have been a topic of concern since early 2022 when Wells Fargo filed a petition for a guardianship hearing after Williams' former financial advisor claimed she was of "unsound mind." The bank subsequently denied Williams access to her accounts, which contained "several million dollars' worth of funds," according to her attorney at the time.
As the mystery surrounding Williams' disappearance deepens, her loved ones are left wondering about her fate. "What is the end game? How does this end when her money is gone? Where is she?" Schell asks. "There's something about it that just doesn't feel right. There's no sign of her beyond a statement that was made which doesn't sound like her at all, and why hasn't a medical team come forward to talk about her dementia diagnosis?"
