The purple chair is empty. It's been empty for a while now, and honestly, the daytime TV landscape feels a lot quieter without Wendy’s signature "How you doin'?" echoing through the studio. But if you think Wendy Williams now is just a memory, you haven’t been paying attention to the legal firestorm brewing in New York.
She isn't just "retired." She’s fighting.
Right now, Wendy is living in a studio apartment on the fifth floor of The Coterie, a high-end assisted living facility in Manhattan’s Hudson Yards. She calls it a "dump." She says it feels like a prison. Imagine being the woman who built a $20 million empire, only to find yourself restricted from using an iPad or making a phone call without permission.
That’s the reality. It’s messy, it’s complicated, and it’s a far cry from the glamour of New York Fashion Week—though she did make a surprise appearance there recently, looking "like a zillion dollars" in a black blazer dress.
The Diagnosis That Changed Everything (Or Did It?)
For the longest time, the narrative was set in stone. In February 2024, her team went public: Wendy had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). It’s the same heartbreaking condition affecting Bruce Willis. It affects how you talk, how you act, and how you process the world.
But here is where things get wild.
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In late 2025, a New York City neurologist reportedly threw a massive wrench into the gears. After a series of fresh neurological tests and brain scans, the specialist concluded that Wendy does not have dementia.
Wait, what?
The diagnosis that has been used to keep her under a court-ordered guardianship since 2022 is now being flatly contested. Her legal team, led by powerhouse attorney Joe Tacopina, is using these results to argue that she was never "permanently incapacitated" as her guardian claimed.
Why the Guardianship is Still Standing
Even with a doctor saying she’s clear of FTD, the court isn't just handing over the keys to the vault. Since May 2022, Wendy’s life has been managed by Sabrina Morrissey, a court-appointed guardian. This whole saga started when Wells Fargo froze her accounts, claiming she was of "unsound mind" and a victim of "undue influence."
- Financial Control: Wendy has zero access to her millions. She has complained that she can't even buy a birthday gift for her father.
- Physical Restrictions: She is mostly confined to the "memory unit" floor.
- Legal Standing: In August 2025, a judge upheld the guardianship despite Wendy’s protests, citing "complications" among her family members and ex-husband, Kevin Hunter.
The system is designed to protect, but Wendy calls it a trap. She told The Cut that the whole thing is about "money, money, money, money." It’s a familiar refrain in the world of celebrity conservatorships, echoing the #FreeBritney movement that gripped the world years ago.
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Where is Wendy Williams Now?
If you walked through Hudson Yards today, you might not see her. You’d have to look up at a fifth-story window.
Wendy spends most of her days in that studio apartment. She’s got a bed, a TV, and a bathroom. Her niece, Alex Finnie, described the setup as a "luxury prison." She’s isolated. Most visitors are blocked. She can make outgoing calls, but nobody can call her directly on a landline.
It’s a bizarre existence for a woman who spent decades talking to millions.
But she hasn't lost that "Wendy" spark. She’s been spotted at a Brooklyn megachurch lately. She says the sermons give her faith and keep her in touch with herself. It’s one of the few places she’s allowed to go where she feels like a person instead of a patient.
The Family Feud
The tragedy isn't just the health scare; it's the fragmentation of her inner circle.
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- Kevin Hunter: Her ex-husband filed a $250 million lawsuit against the guardian and the judge. Wendy’s response? She told TMZ she had "no idea" he did that and wants him nowhere near her life.
- The Florida Family: Her son, Kevin Jr., and her sister, Wanda, are in Florida. They’ve been vocal about wanting her home, but the New York courts have kept her local.
- The Guardian: Sabrina Morrissey maintains that Wendy is incapacitated and needs protection from people who would exploit her.
What Happens in 2026?
We are at a tipping point. Tacopina has been vocal: he wants a jury trial. He wants the world to see the new medical evidence. He’s been telling anyone who will listen that Wendy will be "out" of the guardianship by the end of this year.
Is she ready for a comeback?
She says she is. She talks about the "Wendy Experience" podcast. She talks about getting back into the dating scene. She even joked about passing a mental capacity test with "flying colors."
But the path back to the spotlight is steep. Lymphedema and Graves' disease have already taken a physical toll on her. The neurological battle is even more taxing. Even if the dementia diagnosis was wrong, the years of alcohol struggles and extreme stress have left marks that don't just disappear with a court order.
How to Support and Stay Informed
If you're following the #FreeWendy movement, the best thing you can do is stick to verified reporting. The tabloid machine is relentless, and a lot of the "updates" you see on social media are based on old documentary footage rather than her current 2026 status.
Actionable Steps for Fans:
- Monitor Court Dates: The next major rulings on her guardianship status are expected to hit the New York Supreme Court docket in the coming months.
- Support FTD Awareness: Whether Wendy has it or not, the spotlight on her case has helped organizations like the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration (AFTD) gain much-needed visibility.
- Fact-Check the Documentary Narrative: Remember that the Where Is Wendy Williams? documentary was filmed during a peak period of crisis. Her current medical team claims her "neurological resilience" has improved significantly since she achieved sobriety.
Wendy Williams is a survivor. Whether she's back in a purple chair or just living her life in a house in Jersey, she deserves the autonomy she’s been fighting for. The Queen of Media might be down, but if history has taught us anything about Wendy, she always finds a way to have the last word.