Wendy Williams’ ongoing health struggles are back in the spotlight thanks to a new documentary that dives into her battle with alcoholism, her dementia diagnosis, and life under court-ordered guardianship.
The hour-long special, TRAPPED: What Is Happening to Wendy Williams?, aired May 19 on the ID Channel and includes fresh claims about a relapse that led to her being placed in a more controlled care environment.
Investigative journalist Diane Dimond, who appears in the special, says Wendy’s living situation changed after an incident on her 60th birthday. At the time, she had more freedom on the third floor of a New York City assisted living facility.
“Wendy was on the third floor in this care unit, where she has access to the hallways, to the elevators,” Dimond explained. “And on her birthday, she decided to get in the elevator and see where she could go. Well, it went all the way up to the rooftop bar, and it being her birthday, she ordered a drink, and then another one, and another. Who knows how many, but she will admit to you that she got drunk, she had a relapse.”
Dimond claims the birthday binge resulted in Williams being moved to the fifth floor, a secured memory care unit where she’s no longer allowed to move freely.
“Her treatment is to be sent to a much more restrictive ward,” she said. “And that was the fifth floor, the memory care unit, where she has a room with a bathroom and a television, and she is locked into that floor 24/7 unless the guardian gives her permission to go out once in a while.”
Williams was placed under guardianship in 2022 and diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and primary progressive aphasia in 2023. She previously addressed the birthday incident during a March 2024 interview on The View, admitting she “celebrated” her 60th but emphasized that she’s now sober.
The documentary follows the recent release of Where Is Wendy Williams?, which first sparked public concern over her condition and the control over her personal affairs.
