A&E Television Networks and Lifetime Entertainment Services have brought a counterclaim against Wendy Williams‘ guardian Sabrina Morrissey, who sued the networks over a docuseries they released about the former television host.
According to legal documents filed Nov. 15 in New York, the entertainment companies are seeking the costs and fees they incurred from defending themselves from Morrissey’s lawsuit against them. The companies argue in their counterclaim that Morrissey sought to “inhibit the exercise of free speech and harass publishers by forcing them to spend money to defend against baseless suits.”
USA TODAY has reached out to Morrissey’s representatives for comment.
The companies also allege in their counterclaim that Morrissey’s lawsuits against them were prompted by the desire to protect her own image.
“It was only when Morrissey realized that the Documentary would question the quality of her own guardianship of (Williams) that Morrissey suddenly decided to try to ensure the Documentary would never be released,” the document states.
The companies also said in their counterclaim that their docuseries showed how Williams’ guardianship “isolated her from her family, left her largely alone and unattended in her apartment, exacerbated her self-destructive behavior and mental decline, and failed to prevent (Williams’) use and/or abuse of alcohol.”
Morrissey has been pursuing legal action against A&E Television Networks, Lifetime Entertainment Services and others involved in the release of “Where is Wendy Williams?,” a docuseries about Williams’ abrupt exit from public life, that came out in February.
A Nov. 12 memo filed by Morrissey’s attorneys describes Williams as an “acclaimed entertainer who, tragically, has been afflicted by early-onset dementia.” In that document, they also revealed Williams has become “cognitively impaired and permanently incapacitated.”
In an amended September complaint, Morrissey accused the defendants of taking “advantage of (Williams) in the cruelest, most obscene way possible for their own financial gain.”
Williams’ representatives revealed in February that she was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia in 2023. In a follow-up statement to USA TODAY at the time, they said Williams is “able to do many things for herself” and was involved in the selection process for her care team.
Wendy Williams’ Lifetime documentary airs despite guardian’s lawsuit
In a February lawsuit, Morrissey attempted to block Lifetime’s broadcast of “Where is Wendy Williams?” which included footage of the former talk-show host and interviews.
Morrissey sued for injunction relief and a temporary restraining order, both measures that can be used to keep a party from doing a certain action. However, an appellate judge ruled in the TV network’s favor, arguing that such a ban would be an “impermissible prior restraint on speech that violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.”
Lifetime previously aired a biopic about Williams’ life, “Wendy Williams: The Movie,” and a documentary, “Wendy Williams: What a Mess,” both in 2021. In a statement at the time, the network said the docuseries “provides a raw, honest and unfiltered reality of Wendy’s life after she was placed under financial guardianship, shedding light on the vulnerabilities that has turned Wendy into the Hot Topic herself.”
In an amended complaint filed in September, Morrissey claimed Williams was not capable of consenting to be filmed for the documentary, despite being credited as an executive producer on the project. Additionally, Williams allegedly received around $82,000 for the “stomach-turning” four-episode series.
“This is a paltry sum for the use of highly invasive, humiliating footage that portrayed her ‘in the confusing throes of dementia,’ while Defendants, who have profited on the streaming of the Program have likely already earned millions,” the complaint read.
In response, Morrissey requested to the court that profits from the documentary go to Williams, as she will need “significant funding to provide for proper medical care and supervision for the rest of her life.”
