Key Takeaways
- A new medical report found no evidence of frontotemporal dementia in Wendy Williams.
- Experts say FTD is a progressive disease, making the reversal unusual and medically significant.
- Williams’ legal team plans to challenge her guardianship in court, possibly with a jury trial.
Wendy Williams’ health and legal battles are taking another dramatic turn. According to TMZ, a top neurologist has confirmed that the talk show icon does not have frontotemporal dementia — the same condition a judge used to justify placing her under a court-ordered guardianship more than three years ago.
The outlet reported that Williams recently underwent a series of neurological tests in New York City. The results, shared with her legal team late last month, found no evidence of FTD, a group of brain disorders that primarily affect the frontal and temporal lobes, which control behavior, language, and decision-making.
This new diagnosis directly conflicts with the earlier medical report cited when her guardianship was established, which claimed she had been diagnosed with the disease. Experts told TMZ that FTD is a degenerative condition that does not improve over time. Still, Williams has shown “remarkable neurological resilience” since becoming sober three years ago, despite remaining under strict guardianship.
The 61-year-old’s legal team reportedly plans to file paperwork within the next two weeks requesting a hearing to terminate the arrangement. If the judge refuses, her attorney, Joe Tacopina, is expected to demand a jury trial and ask jurors to “free Wendy,” according to the outlet.
Wendy Williams opens up about her guardianship
As previously reported by REVOLT, at the beginning of the year, Williams spoke with “The Breakfast Club” in her first interview since the release of her Lifetime documentary, Where Is Wendy Williams? During the phone call, she described feeling trapped in her living facility. “I am not cognitively impaired. But I feel like I am in prison,” she said at the time. “I’m in this place where the people are in their 90s and their 80s and their 70s.”
Joined by her niece, Alex, Williams detailed the strict conditions of her conservatorship, saying she’s been isolated, denied visitors, and unable to make her own financial decisions. “At 94, the day after that is not promised,” she said tearfully of her father, expressing fear that her guardianship may prevent her from visiting him.