Wendy Williams has shed rare insight into her living situation at Coterie, her high-end assisted-living facility in Hudson Yards, New York City, where she reportedly resides on one floor.
Williams spoke to The Cut via phone from her memory care floor. Per the outlet, the memory care floor is locked, and she needs both permission from Coterie and her guardian if she wants to leave. She also is not allowed to have a cell phone, but her room has a landline that only makes outgoing calls.
Her friend and owner of the upscale Italian eatery Tucci in New York, Max Tucci, also spoke with the outlet, sharing that Williams describes the establishment to him as a “dump.”
“This is, like, where billionaires send their grandmothers. But, you know,” he said before his tone became serious, “She doesn’t need it. Wendy doesn’t lie.”
During her phone interview, Williams asked the reporter who toured the facility, “Did you see the people? The elderly people? Why do I want to look at that? This is a f—-d-up situation. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked that I be moved from this floor.”
The former talk show host was placed under a court-appointed guardianship in 2022. In February 2024, Williams’s team announced she’d been diagnosed with both progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD).
Williams has continued to deny that she has dementia.
The Cut described the lobby of Coterie as having fresh lilies displayed and marble floors, with a tiered crystal waterfall chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The outlet also listed the amenities at the facility, which includes a 24/7 nursing staff.
Also, for residents able to participate, there is a private movie theater and a snack bar, a spa and a hair salon.
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According to the outlet, Williams has been in the assisted-living facility since 2023.
Williams remained out of the public eye, but in recent months, she has been making public appearances. Last month, Williams was seen out during New York Fashion Week.
“You know I’ve been out. So obviously I do go out,” Williams said of her outing. She also said that she’s been attending a “megachurch” in Brooklyn.
“It gives me faith and keeps me very well in touch with God and myself,” Williams said.
Williams initially began her stay on the facility’s third floor, which is described as having floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking 35th Street. The bathrooms are all marble with heated flooring and assistance bars.
According to the outlet, a friend of Williams’ claimed that on her birthday in July, she went up to the facility’s penthouse restaurant and bar and got “hammered.” Shortly after, Williams was moved to the memory care unit.
Williams told the outlet that a judge allowed her to have an iPad inside her “memory floor” studio suite, which is a 360 sq. ft unit, according to Coterie’s website.
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Per the facility’s website, this unit runs for $25,800 per month.
According to The Cut, on top of paying for the unit, Williams’s estate is responsible for the guardianship lawyer fees, paying her guardian, Sabrina Morrissey’s fees and her lawyer fees, who is on retainer at $10,000 a month.
The Cut noted that lawyers were in court this year concerned about Williams’s finances. In 2024, Morrissey sold Williams’s 2,400-square-foot apartment, reportedly at a loss. They also noted that at some point, Morrissey rehomed her two cats.
Williams told the outlet that she uses her iPad to listen to her old radio show and stay up-to-date on news about herself.
The Cut described the memory care unit in a bleak manner. The outlet said the floor smelled like Febreze. There aren’t any locks on the apartment doors and there aren’t stoves or refrigerators for residents “safety.” On this floor, there is a gym, where the reporter spotted Williams working out. She was on the treadmill, overlooking the city, wearing a black top, leggings, and her usual blonde wig.
“She looked good,” the reporter noted.
The Cut mentioned the bombshell lawsuit Williams’s ex-husband, Kevin Hunter, filed on her behalf in June.
According to the outlet, Hunter has alleged that Williams is competent and the judge dealing with the case is “crooked.”
Hunter called the guardianship “fraudulent bondage” and called for Sabrina Morrissey, Williams’ guardian, to be fired. The outlet noted that according to sealed court documents, Hunter had been receiving $37,500 per month in alimony from Williams for years.
He allegedly had not collected that money since shortly before the guardianship proceeding began. Notably, the lawsuit was seeking $250 million in damages be split between him and Williams.
On Oct, 9, TMZ reported that a judge ruled to throw out Hunter’s lawsuit. The outlet noted that there is room for Hunter to refile an amended complaint on his own behalf.
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Williams filed for divorce from Hunter in 2019 after she discovered he fathered another child. They were married for 21 years and share one son, Kevin Hunter Jr., 25.
The Cut was able to get Williams’s son on the phone, and he explained that he’s trying to stay clear of any drama involving his mother.
“I’m really not trying to be too caught up in this. I’m trying to build, carve out my own path right now, away from everything. I just want her to get out of this. Because it’s not right,” he told the outlet.
The Cut reported that in the coming weeks and months, a new medical report may be coming forward.
The judge overseeing the case could reaffirm the guardianship, ease up on the restrictions, rule that Morrissey should be replaced or remove it all together. Sources told the outlet that removing the guardianship is unlikely.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Coterie for comment.
