The final episode of “The Wendy Williams Show” premiered Friday without its eponymous host, who has been absent from the program since July. Williams previously vowed to return before the series wrapped, but her plan didn’t pan out.
Included in the finale was a video tribute to Williams, who helmed “The Wendy Williams Show” for 12 seasons before exiting the syndicated daytime series for health reasons. The host of Friday’s episode was Sherri Shepherd, who is slated to take over Williams’ time slot with her own talk show this fall.
In February, media company Debmar-Mercury announced that Williams’ popular program would be coming to an end this year. The announcement came several months after the former radio DJ bid farewell to audiences at the end of Season 12.
