Wendy Williams’ ex-husband, Kevin Hunter, is suing the production company behind her namesake talk show.
Hunter is suing Debmar-Mercury for wrongfully terminating him from his long-standing role as executive producer on The Wendy Williams Show, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE. According to the complaint, he was terminated “on the basis of his marital status, which is prohibited under New York City’s Human Rights Law.”
According to the lawsuit, Hunter — whose position on the syndicated series started in 2007 — received notification from Debmar-Mercury founder Ira Bernstein that he had been fired “effective immediately.” Hunter asserts that his job status shifted days after Williams filed for divorce in 2019.
Kevin Jr., the former couple’s son, was born in 2000. They married in 1997.
Williams filed for divorce in April 2019 following the discovery of a child Kevin fathered with his mistress. Their dissolution did not take place until 2020.
“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 filing states. “As a result of Defendants’ aforesaid actions and the breach of their agreement with Hunter, the Defendants have been unjustly enriched from Plaintiff’s Executive Producer contributions to the Show, as well as enduring Product Integrations engagements Plaintiff has brought to the Show and that the Show has retained.”
Williams’ continuing health problems have deterred her from returning to host her namesake series, which has been supplemented by a series of all-star guest hosts. After it was revealed that The Wendy Williams Show would end after this season, regular guest host Sherri Shepherd was hired to star in her own show, Sherri, which will take over Williams’ specific time.
According to published reports, Hunter’s complaint alleges that “many of the elements” he “assists in conceptualizing and the product integrations he created” for Williams’ show will be integrated into Shepherd’s new show. “Even after The Wendy Williams Show concludes, Defendants will continue to benefit unjustly from Plaintiff’s preliminary work, including the Show’s initial idea and Plaintiff’s product integration agreements,” the document states.
Additionally, Hunter asserts that Williams’ show “never recovered” following his dismissal and that the production company “underestimated [his] value” to the show.
Additionally, the filing states that Hunter “was a critical component of the Show’s inner workings, and Debmar has been unable to fill the void left by Plaintiff’s departure.”
According to court documents, Hunter claimed that he suffered a “economic loss” of between $7 million and $10 million as a result of his firing.
Source: People
