The Exploitation of Wendy Williams in Television Documentary News

Wendy Williams’ ongoing legal battle against A+E Networks, Lifetime’s parent company, regarding a television documentary chronicling her declining health, has taken a new turn. An amended complaint filed in New York County Supreme Court demands that all profits from the documentary be allocated to fund Williams’ medical care. The lawsuit alleges that Williams received a mere $82,000 for her participation in the project, which extensively documented her struggles with family, fame, and alcohol addiction over nearly a year. The amended complaint adds Lifetime Entertainment Services, Creature Films, and producer Mark Ford as defendants, joining A&E and EOne Productions.

The complaint argues that the $82,000 payment is insignificant considering the invasive and humiliating nature of the footage, which allegedly portrays Williams in a state of dementia. It contends that the defendants have likely earned millions from streaming the program.

In March, Williams’ temporary guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, initiated a lawsuit against A+E Networks, alleging that the contract for the documentary was invalid due to Williams’ lack of legal and mental capacity to consent at the time of filming. The lawsuit claimed Williams was misled into believing the film would be “positive and beneficial” to her image.

Morrissey’s initial legal efforts included seeking a temporary restraining order to block the documentary’s release, which was initially granted but later overturned by a higher court. High-profile attorney Roberta Kaplan, known for representing E. Jean Carroll in her defamation case against Donald Trump, has since joined Williams’ legal team. Kaplan has accused the defendants of “viciously and shamelessly exploiting Wendy Williams for their own profit while she was obviously incapacitated and suffering from dementia.”

The amended complaint alleges that Williams’ former manager, Will Selby, orchestrated her involvement in the documentary, assuring Morrissey that the film would focus on Williams’ return to media and that he would have full creative control. Similar assurances were allegedly given to EOne’s lawyers. However, the complaint claims that a one-sided talent agreement was drafted after Williams had already been filmed in a disheveled and mentally confused state. The filing asserts that no one witnessing Williams in this condition could have believed she was capable of consenting to filming or the agreement itself.

Despite Morrissey’s refusal to allow further filming after Williams began receiving around-the-clock care and the absence of a finalized contract, A&E released a promotional trailer in February. The complaint criticizes the filmmakers for portraying Williams as a “laughingstock and drunkard,” including unflattering footage such as images of her without her wig.

The complaint emphasizes that Williams always wears her wig for meetings and would never have consented to being filmed without it for public consumption.

The four-and-a-half-hour documentary, which aired in February, included footage spanning seven months of Williams’ life leading up to her entering a health facility for cognitive issues. Despite the controversy, the documentary achieved blockbuster ratings, averaging over a million viewers and becoming Lifetime’s biggest nonfiction debut in two years. Williams, her son, Kevin Hunter Jr., and Selby are credited as executive producers.

The legal battle continues, raising significant ethical questions about the responsibility of filmmakers in Television Documentary News when portraying vulnerable individuals. The outcome of this case could have far-reaching implications for the industry.