Sherri Shepherd Talker to Replace ‘The Wendy Williams Show’

After 12 seasons and frequent absences by its host in recent years, daytime syndicated daytime talker “The Wendy Williams Show” is coming to an end. The decision to conclude the show was made in light of Williams’s health concerns, including issues with COVID-19 and Graves’ disease, which had prevented her from hosting the show since October.

“We all have a great love and affinity for Wendy, who grew into a true icon during her 12 incredible seasons as the solo host of a live, daily talk show dishing on ‘Hot Topics’ and interviewing celebrities,” Debmar-Mercury said in a statement.

“It’s been a challenging time for Wendy as she deals with her health issues. She is incredibly grateful to Debmar-Mercury, to Sherri and everybody else who has supported the show through this time,” Williams’ rep Howard Bragman said in a statement. “She, more than anyone, understands the reality of syndicated television — you can’t go to the marketplace and sell a show that’s the ‘Maybe Wendy Show’. She understands why this decision was made from a business point of view, and she has been assured by Debmar-Mercury that should her health get to a point where she can host again and should her desire be that she hosts again that she would be back on TV at that time.”

Sherri Shepherd, previously a co-host on ABC’s “The View” from 2007 to 2014, will step in immediately in a new daily hour titled “Sherri.”

“The Wendy Williams Show” was created by Williams and debuted in 2008 from studios in New York City. It first aired as a test run in select major U.S. markets and was upgraded to a national launch in summer 2009. Last year a biopic about her life, “Wendy Williams: The Movie” debuted on Lifetime and detailed her rise to talk show success.