Wendy Williams Reportedly ‘Never’ Returning to Talk Show, Network Planning to Rebrand & Hire Full-Time Replacement

Wendy Williams‘ talk show reign is reportedly coming to an official end following months of health struggles.

Anonymous insiders reportedly are saying “The Wendy Williams Show” host, who has been on hiatus from her talk show since September amid health complications, “will never return” to her hosting seat and a search for her permanent replacement is quietly underway.

Allegedly, the combination of Williams’ health struggles and continuously strong ratings in her absence are what have driven studio executives to rebrand the show and continue it without its namesake.

Wendy Williams‘ talk show reign is reportedly coming to an official end following months of health struggles.

“No-one expected ratings to go up 32 percent without Wendy,” Radar Online reported its unnamed source said. “The fill-in hosts were just supposed to keep the show’s lights on until Wendy was well enough to return. It was assumed that without Wendy, the audience would not watch, but the has not been the case. In fact, when Sherri Shepherd took over she not only retained all of Wendy’s fans but also brought in a whole new audience too. This is why the search has changed from finding a temporary replacement to a full-time one.”

Shepherd, who will return to the show as guest host the week of December 13-17, is reportedly the front-runner for the full-time gig, with a source saying that the job is “Sherri’s to lose. She is the No. 1 choice.”

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