Wendy William’s ex husband Kevin Hunter has filed a lawsuit for $7million against the TV company producing The Wendy Williams Show for alleged wrongful termination.
The civil lawsuit filed in a federal court in New York City Tuesday claimed that Hunter, 49, was wrongly fired by Debmar-Mercury as an executive producer due to his marital status with the show’s host.
Williams, 57, filed for divorce from Hunter in April 2019 citing irreconcilable differences after his mistress Sharina Hudson gave birth to his child in March 2019.
‘Hunter was one of the reasons behind the Wendy William Show’s tremendous success and everything seemed to go south after he left. Mr. Hunter was unlawfully terminated solely due to his marital status to Wendy, which is contrary to human rights laws in NYC,’ his attorney Abe George told DailyMail.com.
Wendy William’s ex husband Kevin Hunter has filed a lawsuit for $7million against the TV company producing The Wendy Williams Show for alleged wrongful termination
Happier times: Wendy Williams and ex-husband Kevin are show in July 2018 in New York City
‘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,’ Hunter’s lawyer added.
Civil lawsuit: Kevin Hunter filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the TV company producing The Wendy Williams Show for alleged wrongful termination
The lawsuit listed Debmar-Mercury founders Ira Bernstein and Mort Marcus as defendants and demanded a jury trial.
Hunter was seeking a monetary award of at least $7 million, as well as punitive damages, lost wages and legal fees, according to court documents.
Hunter was an executive producer of The Wendy Williams Show since 2007 and the lawsuit stated that he was involved in the show’s branding and helped conceptualize ‘the wildly popular segments ”Hot Topics,” ”Shoe Came,” and “Hot Seat” segments of the show’.
The lawsuit stated that Hunter was served with notice that Williams was filing for divorce on April 11, 2019, and a week later he received a written notice of his termination from Bernstein.
‘The termination of Plaintiff was based strictly upon Plaintiff’s marital status and his impending divorce to the Show’s host, ignoring all of the contributions that Plaintiff made to make the Show a success,’ the lawsuit stated.
The lawsuit listed Debmar-Mercury founders Ira Bernstein and Mort Marcus as defendants and demanded a jury trial. Hunter was seeking a monetary award of at least $7 million, as well as punitive damages, lost wages and legal fees, according to court documents
It’s been a tumultuous few years for Wendy, who has dealt with addiction, a cheating husband, divorce and now the loss of her show.
Wendy’s troubles began in December 2018 when the star hired a private investigator to spy on her husband who she suspected was still carrying on with his mistress Sharina Hudson.
In 2017, Hudson had been at the center of a DailyMail.com expose revealing her ten-year affair with Wendy’s husband.
In 2019, DailyMail.com revealed that Wendy was staying overnight at a private facility run by the Pure Recovery Network in Long Island City, New York.
She had plunged into an alcohol- and pill-fueled depression when she fractured her shoulder during a confrontation with her cheating husband Hunter.
And finally in 2020, Wendy finalized her divorce from Hunter and he was seen moving out of their New Jersey home.
Her unfaithful spouse was spotted carrying boxes out of their Livingston, New Jersey, after he was served divorce paper. Movers filled the truck with large boxes and furniture as Hunter was seen looking grim amid the divorce.
Williams and Hunter have 21-year-old son Kevin Samuel together.
Last year Williams took a leave of absence from her daytime talk show due to various medical issues.
Debmar-Mercury announced last month that frequent guest host Sherri Shepherd, 54, had been signed on to host a new talk show Sherri as a replacement for The Wendy Williams Show.
Wendy filed for divorce from her husband Kevin Hunter (right) after reports his mistress Sharina (left) gave birth to a baby girl. ‘For you lonely girls who can’t keep your hands off other people’s men, there is a hot place in hell for you!’ the TV host said on her show
Family picture: Kevin, Wendy and their son Kevin Hunter Jr are shown in July 2017 in New York City
The talk show host tested positive for a breakthrough infection of COVID-19 in September.
DailyMail.com previously revealed that Wendy failed to show up to studio to shoot her new season September.
Fans who had lined up outside the Chelsea Studios in New York had already been issued with tickets and wristbands and signed appearance waivers to be part of the first show of Season 13, when a member of staff made the shock announcement that the star wasn’t coming, and filming was canceled.
‘Wendy has tested negative for Covid,’ the staffer told the disappointed crowd who had waited more than two hours for admission, ‘But her health is still not great, and she wants to be better than ever when she comes back.’
Earlier a member of staff had told fans to think up questions for the ‘Ask Wendy,’ section telling them that it was ‘her favorite’ and that she was ‘looking forward to getting all your questions.’
Wendy was last seen on her show on July 16, 2021. Her team said she will come back for Season 13 on September 20, but that was pushed back to October 4 and then to October 18
A statement posted on Instagram shortly after Wendy was a no-show for filming said, ‘She has been and continues to be under a doctor’s care and is still not ready to return to work’
Wendy’s team has posted statements to the show’s Instagram account, notifying the public of her health issues
A statement posted on Instagram shortly after said, ‘She has been and continues to be under a doctor’s care and is still not ready to return to work.
‘We plan to return with new shows on Oct 18.
‘Her breakthrough covid case is no longer an issue and she has tested negative, but she is still dealing with some ongoing medical issues.’
Fans who had hoped to attend the filming were sent apologetic emails offering them tickets to filming of The Nick Cannon Show instead.
