‘The Wendy Williams Show’ to be Guest-Hosted by Michael Rapaport, Bill Bellamy, Jerry Springer and Steve Wilkos

By
( )
published

Wendy Williams remains out on medical leave after her show's 13th season debut was delayed

'The Wendy Williams Show' continues to be hosted by guests as Williams remains out on medical leave.
'The Wendy Williams Show' continues to be hosted by guests as Williams remains out on medical leave. (Image credit: Jason DeCrow/The Wendy Williams Show)

The Wendy Williams Show has lined up its next few weeks of guest hosts, with Michael Rapaport, Bill Bellamy, Jerry Springer and Steve Wilkos all filling in on the Debmar-Mercury daytime talker.

Host Wendy Williams is out on an extended medical leave that delayed the premiere of her show’s 13th season for nearly a month. The Wendy Williams Show finally debuted with a panel of guest hosts on Monday, Oct. 18, followed by four days of guest hosting by actress Leah Remini. Over the next two weeks, Whitney Cummings and Sherri Shepherd took over for Williams.

Also: Whitney Cummings, Sherri Shepherd Next Up to Guest Host 'Wendy Williams'

Rapaport — actor, comedian and podcast host, who will be starring in Hulu’s upcoming Life & Beth — guest hosts for the week of Nov. 8. A panel will again take over on Monday, Nov. 15, followed by two days of hosting on Tuesday, Nov. 16 and Wednesday, Nov. 17, by comedian Bellamy, who is starring in A Rich Christmas on BET Plus. 

Springer, the longtime star of NBCUniversal’s Jerry Springer and now of NBCU’s court show Judge Jerry, and Wilkos, Springer’s former bouncer and host of his own NBCU talker, The Steve Wilkos Show, will take over on Thursday, Nov. 18 and Friday, Nov. 19.

Also: 'Wendy Williams' Rises as Season 13 Debuts

The Wendy Williams Show saw a 33% increase to a 0.8 live plus same day national household rating, according to Nielsen, in the week ended Oct. 24, which included the show’s 13th season premiere hosted by a guest panel.

Paige Albiniak
Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.