Wendy Williams’ ex-husband Kevin Hunter is suing the production company of her Daytime Emmy Award-winning eponymous talk show, “The Wendy Williams Show,” for millions of dollars for alleged wrongful termination.
In a civil lawsuit filed in a federal court in New York City on Tuesday, March 1, Hunter, who served as the show’s executive producer, is accusing the founders of Debmar-Mercury, Ira Bernstein and Mort Marcus, of wrongfully firing him over his marital status with Williams, citing that he was pink-slipped just one week after news broke of his divorce.
“Hunter was one of the reasons behind the Wendy William Show’s tremendous success, and everything seemed to go south after he left,” Hunter’s attorney, Abe George, told Page Six in a statement Wednesday, March 2. According to legal documents obtained by the outlet, Hunter claims he was highly involved in conceptualizing “the wildly popular segments ‘Hot Topics,’ ‘Shoe Cam,’ and ‘Hot Seat’ segments of the show.”
George added that, “Mr. Hunter was unlawfully terminated solely due to his marital status to Wendy, which is contrary to human rights laws in NYC. This lawsuit seeks to compensate Mr. Hunter for the sweat equity that he put into the show and that Debmar-Mercury will continue to profit on even in their new reincarnation of the ‘Wendy Williams Show,’” he added, referencing the reported pending cancellation and Sherri Shepherd’s new series set to take the slot once held by Williams.
Hunter was fired from the show in April 2019, roughly one week after the talk-show tycoon filed for divorce after his then-girlfriend Sharina Hudson gave birth to their child one month before. Hunter and his legal representation are now seeking a trial by jury and compensation of at least $7 million, as well as punitive damages, lost wages and legal fees.
Representatives for the show have yet to address the lawsuit. Williams also has yet to react to the latest news surrounding her popular show. As previously reported, later this year, Shepherd will be hosting her own talk show titled “Sherri,” which will air during the current slot taken by “The Wendy Williams Show” for 14 seasons.
