Williams' niece, Alex Finnie, talks to Deborah Roberts about her aunt's struggles and decision to "take ownership" of her story.
Ahead of the release of Lifetime's documentary, Where Is Wendy Williams?, the former daytime talk show host's family is sharing some insights into Williams' life since she disappeared from the public eye. In a preview of a Nightline sit-down interview with Deborah Roberts shown on Thursday's Good Morning America, Alex Finnie -- Williams' niece -- opens up about how it's been for the star's family as they've witnessed her lowest moments, including an excessive drinking habit and moments of incoherence.
"I said I wasn't gonna cry -- because I feel like I've cried enough over the last year and a half," Finnie tells Roberts. "But what people are gonna see is a broken woman who has had the world on her shoulders for so long and just cracked."
The four-and-a-half-hour, two-night documentary event chronicles the events that led to Williams being placed under the control of a court-ordered guardian in 2022.
Over the last several years, the TV personality's health struggles -- coupled with upheaval in her personal life -- have been well documented: from fainting on live TV back in October 2017 (which she claimed was from dehydration), revealing her Graves' disease diagnosis on her show in February 2018 (forcing her to take three weeks off) and her shoulder fracture in December 2018, to dealing with a very public breakup with then-husband Kevin Hunter, whom she officially divorced in January 2020 after 25 years of marriage.
When the pandemic hit, not only was she forced to film her show remotely, but Williams was forced to take more time off from the show again in May 2020 to deal with health concerns related to Graves' disease, an immune system disorder that results in the overproduction of thyroid hormones.
Just as she was gearing up to return for her 13th season last fall, the show announced on Sept. 9, 2021 that Williams would temporarily step back from promoting the program while she dealt with some "ongoing health issues."
A string of postponements for the season 13 premiere ultimately led to a slew of guest hosts for The Wendy Williams Show, from Fat Joe and Remy Ma to Michael Rapaport and Kym Whitley, among others. Sherri Shepherd, who was also part of the rotating list of guest hosts, would eventually take over Williams time slot with her own show, Sherri.
In February 2022, Wells Fargo alleged that Wendy was of "unsound mind" and required guardianship due to purported "undue influence and financial exploitation." Wendy has vehemently denied these claims and has demanded the return of her money.
Production of The Wendy Williams Show was canceled in June 2022. Shortly after, Shepherd took over Williams' time slot.
Where Is Wendy Williams? claims to be Williams' chance to retell the past from her perspective and share her story on her terms.
When asked by Roberts about criticism that the film could be exploiting Williams, Finnie says that her aunt saw it as a way to take ownership of her narrative.
"I understand that people will look at it, and -- some people will look at it and think that. But I will say this, first and foremost, my aunt is the executive producer of this documentary," she says. "And when I finally talked with her and I said to her, 'Aunt Wendy, why are -- do you wanna do this?' You know, 'You're -- you're -- you're clearly-- the health piece, all of that has to be addressed. Is now the right time?' And she said, 'Now is the perfect time because I wanna take ownership of my story.'"
Finnie is featured with other family members in the documentary, including the star's son, Kevin Hunter Jr., her sister, Wanda Williams, and other family members as they rally to support Wendy.
Wanda empathizes with her sister's struggles, stating, "We all make choices in life. We all go through our challenges. She's still a person."
Meanwhile, Kevin criticizes the court-appointed guardian, asserting that they haven't effectively protected the former talk show host. Wanda echoes this sentiment, calling the system "broken."
"We are her family," Wanda declares, tears welling up, "and you tell me that I'm not capable of taking care of my sister. What would you do? What should I do?"
As Williams' manager, Will Shelby, previously told ET and reaffirms in the documentary, Williams checked into a treatment facility in April 2023 to confront her battle with alcohol addiction, a move prompted by concerns from her son about the potentially fatal consequences of her addiction.
Roberts reports that Williams' family claims that they don't know where the aforementioned facility is but they have heard from her and that she sounds "much better."
Finnie refutes claims that Williams' family was taking advantage of her financially, prompting the intervention from Wells Fargo, and tells Roberts that they have been "shut out" by the State of New York, preventing them from being able to provide assistance to Williams.
"I personally have not seen [a] family [member] taking advantage of my aunt's money. I haven't," she states firmly. "...The only person that comes out of this victorious, I hope, is my aunt."
"I know that ... in talking with her, she does hope to resume [her] career," she adds. "And my hope for her is that she does whatever she wants to do that makes her happy and that stays in the bounds of keeping her healthy."
Shortly after the preview of Finnie's interview with Roberts aired, a statement released by those claiming to be Williams' care team announced that the talk show host was diagnosed in 2023 with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.
"Over the past few years, questions have been raised at times about Wendy's ability to process information and many have speculated about Wendy's condition, particularly when she began to lose words, act erratically at times, and have difficulty understanding financial transactions," the release stated, adding that the decision to share this news was difficult, but in doing so, Williams and her team are hoping to raise awareness about aphasia and FTD.
"Wendy is still able to do many things for herself. Most importantly she maintains her trademark sense of humor and is receiving the care she requires to make sure she is protected and that her needs are addressed. She is appreciative of the many kind thoughts and good wishes being sent her way," the release concluded.
Lifetime tells ET that they do not know the origins of the PR statment released about Wendy's medical condition, adding that Wendy's family has no comment.
Where is Wendy Williams?, the four-and-a-half-hour, two-night documentary event, will premiere Saturday, Feb. 24 and Feb. 25 at 8pm ET/PT on Lifetime.
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