Sherri Shepherd, who was scheduled to be a guest host for the ailing Wendy Williams as host of The Wendy Williams Show this week, has undergone emergency surgery for appendicitis and is unable to appear.
“Due to appendicitis, Sherri Shepherd underwent an emergency surgery yesterday. The procedure was successful and Ms. Shepherd is doing fine and resting,” Shepherd’s publicist said in a statement to Deadline. “She is absolutely devastated that she will not be able to guest host The Wendy Williams Show today, but she is following doctors orders and expected to make a full recovery. Thank you all for understanding and respecting her privacy.”
A spokesperson for The Wendy Williams Show says Michael Rapaport will be filling in for Shepherd, and that Shepherd hopes to be back on the show later in the week.
Shepherd has been among a rotating list of guest hosts for the show while Williams recovers from complications of Graves disease.
The show’s scheduled September 20 Season 13 premiere was delayed for weeks after Williams tested positive for a breakthrough case of Covid-19. Prior to her Covid diagnosis, the show said Williams would be stepping back from promotional activities ahead of the premiere due to “ongoing health issues.”
Williams has battled various maladies over the last few years. Her battle with Graves disease, an immune system disorder, dates to 1999. She also passed out on live TV in 2017 during the show’s Halloween episode, an incident that was attributed to dehydration.
The show was on hiatus in 2020 because of the pandemic but had a brief remote stint with Williams broadcasting from her New York apartment. Later, production was again paused for several weeks so Williams could be with her family following her mother’s death.
The nationally syndicated Wendy Williams Show is produced and distributed by Debmar-Mercury and has been renewed through the 2021-2022 season by the Fox Television Stations.
Source: Deadline
