Wendy Williams Says She's Trapped — Here's the Truth

Wendy Williams, June 2005. Photo by Timothy M. Moore under CC BY-SA 3.0.

On April 1, 2025, outside the assisted living facility in New York City where Williams is living, protestors gathered to protest Wendy Williams' guardianship. Another protest took place on the same day in Los Angeles. But why is Williams under a guardianship? Here's what we know.

Why a Guardianship?

Wendy Williams, 60, rose to fame as a bold and beloved daytime television host known for "The Wendy Williams Show," where she dished celebrity gossip with unfiltered flair. In 2022, after months of erratic behavior, health issues and financial concerns, a New York court placed her under a guardianship. This legal arrangement — similar to a conservatorship — gives another person or institution control over someone's finances and life decisions when they are deemed unable to manage on their own.

Williams' guardian, attorney Sabrina Morrissey, was appointed to oversee her estate after Wells Fargo raised concerns about potential financial exploitation. In 2024, Williams was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, a condition that can impair communication and reasoning.

#FreeWendy

On April 1, 2025, fans of Williams gathered outside the assisted living home in New York City where she currently resides to protest her guardianship. Across the country on the same day, her supporters also rallied in Los Angeles, where protestors stood on Williams' star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. At the NYC rally, fans wore T-shirts and held signs calling for Williams' freedom as she watched and waved from a window. Leading up to the event, fans had distributed fliers for the #FreeWendy rally that said, "Let's come together and make our voices heard for Wendy!" as reported by PEOPLE.

'Full Control'

The #FreeWendy movement started in 2022 when Williams first went into the guardianship. Morrissey, appointed by the courts to be Williams' guardian, later said Williams was "permanently incapacitated" because of her dementia diagnosis, according to The Daily Beast. When Williams called her friend and former lead-in host, Rosanna Scotto, on "Good Day New York" after the April 1 rallies, Williams told Scotto that Morrissey has full control of her money and phone. Williams has also said before that she experienced emotional abuse while under the conservatorship.

Call for Help

The former daytime talk show host told Scotto she managed to escape on March 10, 2025, after dropping a note out of her window that said, "Help! Wendy!!" as reported by The Daily Beast. Police came to check on her and then took her to the hospital. During her conversation with Scotto, Williams said she shared the results of a mental capacity test with "independent doctors" and that she "passed with flying colors," according to The Daily Beast. This result went against the court's decision to place her under a conservatorship. The decision had claimed she was too incapacitated to manage her own affairs.

'A Prison'

Williams has been speaking out against Morrissey and the conservatorship since January 2025, when she denied being mentally impaired during an interview with "The Breakfast Club." She also referred to the assisted living home as "a prison" in the interview, according to KTLA 5. However, Morrissey said Williams is not restricted to the facility.

"Nobody's saying that Wendy can't leave a building," Morrissey told Vanity Fair, citing Williams' two recent trips to Florida for her son's college graduation and her father's 94th birthday. "But that has become a thread that people pick up on."

Support of Fans

During the New York City protest, Williams was seen waving to fans through a window. She also spoke with PEOPLE on the phone while watching the rally from a window, and she said it felt "very good" to see the support of her fans up close.

"They have posters and t-shirts," she said, watching the scene as she waved. "I'm standing here and looking out the window because I like things like that. I love nothing better than to stop and pose." She added, "It's nice to see regular people, but it's even more important at this time in my life to see media. At this point in life, I can't trust a lot of people and I can't even get into who I can't trust, but there are people that — oh my gosh, I can't trust them as far as I can throw them."

Williams told PEOPLE the outpouring of support from fans makes her hopeful. "It will absolutely 1000% happen," she said about ending the guardianship. "When I get out of the situation, I'm staying in New York where I'm comfortable." She also revealed, "I can't wait to fall in love. I will not lie about that."

Hope for the Future

The protests to end Williams' guardianship show how much support she has from her fans and loved ones. People are speaking out for her freedom and hoping she can regain control of her life. As the movement grows, it's clear that many are standing with her, hoping for a future in which she can make her own decisions again.

References: Wendy Williams Breaks Silence After Desperate Cry for Help | Fans Rally to End Wendy Williams's Guardianship | Wendy Williams calls Rosanna Scotto on Good Day | Wendy Williams Gets Emotional Speaking to PEOPLE Through Facility Window During Rally Protesting Her Guardianship (Exclusive) | Wendy Williams Breaks Silence On The Breakfast Club And Speaks On Her Conservatorship | Wendy Williams, Her Guardian, and the Age of the Celebrity Conservatorship | Wendy Williams denies she’s ‘cognitively impaired’ and says she’s ‘trapped in a conservatorship’ | Wendy Williams: American talk-show host