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It is officially an end of an era for a media pioneer. The Wendy Williams Show is ending and Sherri Sheppard has been slotted to get her own show.
As per The Blast the Ocean Township, New Jersey native has finally gotten her walking papers. Representatives at the show confirmed the writing that has been on the wall for many months is true. “This is also a bitter-sweet moment for us and our partners at FOX,” Debmar-Mercury Co-Presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein said in a press release on Tuesday, February 22. “We all have a great love and affinity for Wendy, who grew into a true icon during her 12 incredible seasons as the solo host of a live, daily talk show dishing on ‘Hot Topics’ and interviewing celebrities.”
The executive went on to further detail the next steps for the time slot. “Since Wendy is still not available to host the show as she continues on her road to recovery, we believe it is best for our fans, stations and advertising partners to start making this transition now. We hope to be able to work with Wendy again in the future, and continue to wish her a speedy and full recovery.”
To no surprise Sherri Sheppard will take over the platform with a show specifically built out for her. She expressed her enthusiasm in a formal statement. “OMG! I am so excited to have my dream come true and debut my very own talk show ‘Sherri’ in the fall,” Shepherd said in a statement. “I can’t wait until I return to NY to host the show and merge everything I love…pop culture, talk, entertainment and comedy.”
A representative for Williams tells People that Wendy is not surprised by move. “It’s been a challenging time for Wendy as she deals with her health issues. She is incredibly grateful to Debmar-Mercury, to Sherri and everybody else who has supported the show through this time,” Howard Bragman said. “She, more than anyone, understands the reality of syndicated television — you can’t go to the marketplace and sell a show that’s the ‘Maybe Wendy Show,’” he continued. “She understands why this decision was made from a business point of view, and she has been assured by Debmar-Mercury that should her health get to a point where she can host again and should her desire be that she hosts again that she would be back on TV at that time.”
Sherri expected to launch this fall.
Photo: The Wendy Williams Show
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