Wendy Williams won’t be returning to her purple chair anytime soon.
Her show has announced a slew of guest hosts that will be filling in for Wendy throughout the entire month of February and into early March.
Michael Rapaport, Sherri Shepherd, Fat Joe, Remy Ma, Bevy Smith and Terrence J have all been tapped for the job.
via People:
The new slate will begin and end with Rappaport, who will conclude his second round of guest hosting duties on March 4. Fat Joe, 51, and Remy Ma, 41, will co-host through Feb. 7 – 11, Smith, 55, and Terrence J, 39, will team up between Feb. 14 – 18 and Shepherd, 54, will return between Feb. 21 – 25.
Season 13 of The Wendy Williams Show has seen a number of big-name hosts amid Williams’ absence.
Last fall, the premiere was first pushed back to Oct. 4 after Williams tested positive for a breakthrough case of COVID-19 while experiencing complications tied to Graves’ disease. The series return date was delayed once more to Oct. 18 despite Williams, 57, recovering from COVID-19, though she was still facing other health concerns.
“Wendy continues to be under medical supervision and meets with her medical team on a daily basis,” the show said in a statement at the time. “She is making progress but is experiencing serious complications as a direct result of Graves’ Disease and her thyroid condition. It has been determined that more time is needed before she is able to return to her live hosting duties.”
The show added that Williams “will be back in her treasured purple chair” as “soon as she’s ready.”
Leah Remini previously stepped in to host the show’s premiere week. Other celebrities that have helped guest-host since then include Whitney Cummings, Jerry Springer and Bill Bellamy.
Ratings soared to a season-high when Shepherd took over last November. But like Williams, Shepherd also experienced a health setback when she underwent emergency surgery to remove her appendix. The crisis resulted in her missing her first day of guest hosting.
Health reasons also prevented Rappaport, 51, from fulfilling his guest hosting duties earlier this month. At the time, the Atypical star revealed tested positive for COVID-19 but was doing “fine.”
The Wendy Williams Show airs weekdays (check local listings).
Maybe Wendy will make it back before the season is over.
