LEAH Remini is set to fill in for Wendy Williams as the host of her popular talk show after the 57-year-old once again delayed her return due to ongoing health issues.
A source confirmed the guest host after The Wendy Williams Show’s Instagram page announced Tuesday that the host will again not be returning due to “serious complications.”
The page shared that the show would instead return Monday, October 18 with a lineup of temporary hosts.
Leah, 51, will guest host the talk show on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the possibility of her continuing on for the rest of the week, as well, a source confirmed.
The Wendy Williams Show will air new episodes as planned next week, with guest hosts taking over while taking part in the same beloved segments, as well as new games.
A source exclusively told The Celeb Report earlier this week that the process to find replacements has been difficult.
The insider said: “The search for Wendy‘s guest hosts is an absolute mess.
“Producers are totally winging it day by day trying to book people to fill in for her.
“They haven’t nailed down a solid roster of people as of yet.”
To make matters worse, the source said because The Wendy Williams Show fans really only tune in to see Wendy, ratings for her fill-in hosts have historically been abysmal.
“Because people are watching for Wendy, potential hosts have been hesitant to take the helm because poor show ratings reflect poorly on them,” the source added.
This isn’t the first time Wendy’s health issues have forced production to find people to fill in for her, but their tried and true go-to replacements have since landed gigs of their own.
Nick Cannon, who filled in for Wendy in 2019, picked up his own show with Debmar-Mercury, which also produces Wendy.
Jerry O’Connell, who has also filled in for Wendy in the past, has since been picked up by The Talk.
On Tuesday, the talk show revealed: “Wendy continues to be under medical supervision and meets with her medical team on a daily basis.
“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,” they claimed.
The post continued: “Wendy is a valued and stalwart member of the Debmar-Mercury family and has been so for 12 years. We want her health to be her top priority. As soon as she’s ready, she will be back in her treasured purple chair.
“We very much appreciate the respect for Wendy’s privacy, as well as all the good wishes from her fans, station partners and advertisers.”
The Wendy Williams Show was postponed from its original return date of September 20th after the host was rushed to the hospital on the 15th due to a “health scare.”
The Celeb Report was first to report that police received a 911 call from her building at 8 am about a “57-year-old female in need of psychiatric services.”
The Celeb Report was also the first to report that the TV star had been “struggling with addiction” leading up to her hospitalization.
“Wendy was drinking every day, even while filming the show,” an insider revealed to The Celeb Report.
The staff of the show has expressed concern over their jobs as many believe that Wendy “will never return.”
