Wendy Williams' best friend claims legal 'guardian' who was caring for the ailing TV host left her without 'access to FOOD' - as she voices DOUBT about her dementia diagnosis: 'No doctor has actually confirmed it'

Wendy Williams’ best friend has slammed the ailing TV host’s legal guardian, claiming that the woman tasked with taking care of her left her without ‘access to food’ – as she voiced her suspicions over Wendy’s recent dementia diagnosis.

The former TV personality, 59, was placed under a legal guardianship in May 2022, after her bank account said it had ‘strong reason to believe’ that she was of ‘unsound mind’ and was ‘the victim of undue influence and financial exploitation.’

At the time, the court assigned someone to manage Wendy’s finances and health, and while their identity was not made public at first, TMZ recently revealed that Wendy’s guardian was a New York-based lawyer named Sabrina Morrissey.

But now, one of the star’s closest pals – Regina Shell, who has known Wendy since she was only 13 years old – has spoken out against her guardian.

Wendy Williams ‘ best friend has slammed the ailing TV host’s guardian, claiming that the woman tasked with taking care of her left her without ‘access to food’

The former TV personality (seen in 2019), 59, was placed under a legal guardianship in May 2022, after her bank account said it had ‘strong reason to believe’ she was of ‘unsound mind’

At the time, the court assigned someone to manage Wendy’s finances, and TMZ recently revealed that Wendy’s guardian was a lawyer named Sabrina Morrissey. Wendy is seen in 2022

During a recent appearance on Chris Cuomo’s NewsNation series, Cuomo, Regina claimed that the broadcaster had ‘no access to her money’ and had to ask permission from Sabrina for any purchase she wanted to make – including meals.

She alleged that this sometimes meant Wendy would go hours on end without eating, which left Regina so worried that she started ordering food for her from across the country.

‘When I was in New York and staying with Wendy in the summer, I noticed … she had no access to her money,’ Regina shared on Monday evening.

‘Every time she had to do anything that she had to pay for, she had to go through the guardian.

‘And she would call to order her breakfast at 7:30 in the morning with the guardian, and she would take the order, but the order wouldn’t show up until sometimes noon. So Wendy wouldn’t have any food.’

Regina said that when she returned home to Los Angeles, she began sending her ‘delivery service’ because she was nervous that Wendy ‘wasn’t getting’ enough to eat.

‘When I went back to LA, I would have to send her food from Los Angeles to New York for delivery service, because she wasn’t getting…’ she trailed off.

‘The communication wasn’t there, and she had no other access to money than this guardian.

She alleged that this sometimes meant Wendy would go hours on end without eating, which left Regina so worried that she started ordering food for her from across the country

Regina (seen with Wendy) said that when she returned home to Los Angeles, she began sending her ‘delivery service’ because she was nervous Wendy ‘wasn’t getting’ enough to eat

‘That’s what was concerning to me, because [Wendy] was telling me she didn’t have food.

‘[Me] and her publicist, who also lives out in LA, both of us were going back and forth sending food to Wendy because she wasn’t having access to food.’

Wendy’s care team revealed that she was suffering from frontotemporal dementia and primary progressive aphasia last week – the same condition as Bruce Willis – days before Lifetime released a shocking new documentary about her, entitled Where Is Wendy Williams?

In the new special, which premiered on Saturday and Sunday, her son, Kevin Hunter Jr., said her condition was ‘alcohol-induced.’

But Regina questioned the diagnosis, telling Chris, ‘I haven’t heard an official diagnosis from a doctor.

‘You know, I’ve heard from [her] team – and we don’t know who the team is – and from Kevin, and her nephew, Travis, but no doctor has actually confirmed these diagnoses.

‘Maybe I’m in denial because I’m so close to the issue. In reflection, I see the behaviors that could potentially be [from] such a diagnosis, but I don’t want to believe that she is in at this point unproducible. That’s not my opinion.’

Days ahead of the documentary’s release, TMZ reported that Wendy’s guardian had filed a lawsuit against the parent company of Lifetime, A&E Television Networks.

Sabrina had asked the court for injunctive relief, indicating her request could have been an attempt to stop the network from airing the TV special – but a judge ultimately dismissed the case citing the First Amendment.

Soon after, it was revealed by The Sun that Sabrina was facing her own legal battle.

But Regina questioned the diagnosis, telling Chris, ‘I haven’t heard an official diagnosis from a doctor. No doctor has actually confirmed these diagnoses’

Lifetime released a shocking new documentary about her, entitled Where Is Wendy Williams?, over the weekend

According to the publication, Sabrina, her firm Morrissey & Morrissey LLP, and about 10 other attorneys were named as defendants in a $30 million lawsuit filed by a man named Jose Verdugo in November 2022 and again in August 2023.

Sabrina reportedly acted as Jose’s guardian from 2010 until 2015, but he accused the defendants of conspiring to ‘perpetuate a baseless guardianship’ and ‘exploiting’ him ‘for their own personal financial gain.’

Filmmakers began following Wendy around in 2022 – at the time hoping to document her ‘comeback’ – but instead, they captured her tragic downward spiral and health decline.

In the documentary, the former TV legend appeared virtually unable to answer the producers’ repetitive questions, often seemed confused, and would ramble incoherently, break down in tears, or lash out at friends or family members.

It was certainly a vast difference from the once-fearless TV star who used to earn $10 million a season as the host of The Wendy Williams Show.

While discussing the making of the two-part special, producer Mark Ford told The Hollywood Reporter that they went in to filming ‘hopeful that Wendy’s story would be redeeming.’

‘But as we filmed, it became evident that this wasn’t really going to be a career comeback story, that this was going to be a deeper story, and that there was something ultimately disturbing going on in Wendy’s life,’ he said.

He added that Wendy ‘loved it when the cameras came to the door’ and that it often ‘gave her a reason to get up in the morning.’

‘She loves the camera, and she became very close with our producers,’ he explained.

‘There was a real emotional connection that the project gave her, and honestly, it got to a point where we were more worried about what would happen to Wendy if we stopped filming then if we continued.

He also stated that had they known that she was suffering dementia ‘going into it, no one would’ve rolled a camera.’ She’s seen in the documentary

Wendy has had an extremely tumultuous life, beginning in her 20s when she battled a severe cocaine and crack ‘addiction’ that resulted in her almost ‘killing herself.’ She’s seen in 1995

She quit drugs at age 29, and went on to become a major media force, eventually launching The Wendy Williams Show in 2008. She’s seen in 2005

‘Because we ultimately knew that we have the control and we can just not air this if it can’t be moved into a positive, redeeming direction for her where we can help Wendy and hopefully other people.

‘We’re human beings. There were incredibly bad days, and there’s a lot of footage we shot that no one will ever see.

‘But we felt like it was important to illustrate the difficult process that Wendy and her family were going through, and frankly what can happen to someone if they’re under the care of a guardian.

‘We understand that it’s a polarizing project, and people have wildly different opinions about it.

‘We were constantly having conversations about whether this is worthwhile, whether this serves Wendy’s story and helps her move forward.

‘But at a certain point, the story was also about the reality of the situation that this woman finds herself in. And it’s not a pretty reality. It’s not a nice thing to watch.

‘And so we were very careful in how we depicted it and when we depicted it. And believe me, as I said, there were many things that we filmed that will never see the light of day.’

He also stated that had they known that she was suffering dementia ‘going into it, no one would’ve rolled a camera.’

In addition, Mark said they never met her court-appointed guardian despite ‘many attempts before and during’ filming.

‘Honestly, we either got a terse hang-up or a very brief, unpleasant exchange. That’s what happened,’ he revealed, when asked what happened when they called her.

When asked about Sabrina’s lawsuit against A&E, Mark added, ‘Nobody should have the power to quash Wendy’s voice, and her family’s voice.’

Wendy has had an extremely tumultuous life, beginning in her 20s when she battled a severe cocaine and crack ‘addiction’ that resulted in her almost ‘killing herself.’

She quit drugs at age 29, and went on to become a major media force, eventually launching The Wendy Williams Show in 2008 and transforming herself into a prominent TV figure.

In 2017, however, her personal life began to crumble after it was revealed that her husband had been embroiled in an explosive affair with a massage therapist 14 years his junior (seen)

Wendy’s marital woes ultimately sent her into an alcohol and pill-fueled depression that forced her in and out of rehab numerous times. She’s seen with her now ex-husband and son in 2017

The former radio broadcaster’s health also began to decline, and she suffered from two different medical conditions – Graves’ Disease and lymphedema. She’s seen in 2021

In 2017, however, after nearly a decade of running the show, the mom-of-one’s personal life began to crumble after it was revealed that her husband of more than two decades, Kevin Hunter, had been embroiled in an explosive affair with a massage therapist 14 years his junior.

Wendy’s marital woes ultimately sent her into an alcohol and pill-fueled depression that forced her in and out of rehab numerous times, and even resulted in her being rushed to the hospital on one occasion.

The former radio broadcaster’s health also began to decline, and she was forced to take numerous hiatuses from her show as she suffered from two different medical conditions – an autoimmune disease known as Graves’ Disease and a disorder of the lymphatic system called lymphedema.

In late 2021, amid her multiple ailments, shattered marriage, and growing alcoholism, Wendy stepped away from her hosting job indefinitely.

In the months that followed, she made a slew of worrisome public appearances that saw her looking disheveled and often confused.

Now, Wendy hasn’t been seen publicly in more than a year, and according to the documentary, she’s been living in a treatment facility since last April.

Following the release of the Lifetime special, Wendy’s former manager, LaShawn Thomas, also questioned the care that Wendy had been receiving since she was put under the guardianship.

She shared a video of the star sitting in a bed, drinking a smoothie, and explaining why she liked to go to the gym to her Instagram.

She claimed it was shot while Wendy was living in Florida with her son, two weeks before she said the former TV star was forced to move back to New York by the guardianship.

‘You can clearly see the difference between Wendy’s well-being during her time here in Florida with her son caring for her and her lack thereof in New York under this “guardianship,”‘ she captioned it.

‘These Wendys are not the same. How did her health deteriorate so quickly, and why isn’t her only child allowed to be by her side? She wasn’t like that when he cared for her. Ask the hard questions.’

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