Inside Wendy Williams Troubled Relationship With Ex Kevin Hunter
Wendy Williams has achieved the kind of success most only experience in daydreams while toiling away at work. The New Jersey native first became a breakout radio star in the '90s and early 2000s, reaching her peak in that industry with her own show on New York's 107.5 WBLS. She then parlayed that gig into books and other money-making opportunities, including getting her own talk show, The Wendy Williams Show, in 2008. But a lot would change for Williams once she met a guy named Kevin Hunter, who eventually became her husband, manager, and executive producer of her TV show. While he helped to grow his wife's brand, he also caused her a lot of heartache along the way due to his cheating.
The pair tied the knot in 1997, and Williams filed for divorce in 2019 after many begged her to do so. During their time together, the former couple had a son, Kevin Hunter Jr., who also made headlines during the messy split. Much of Williams' story with Hunter was captured in her Lifetime documentary Wendy Williams: What A Mess, as well as her biopic Wendy Williams: The Movie. But not everything was shown in those releases, so we'll take a closer look at the troubled relationship between Hunter and the woman who's been called the Queen of All Media.
Kevin Hunter had at least one mistress for well over a decade
In 2019, New York radio host Charlamagne Tha God said that he introduced a woman named Sharina Hudson to Kevin Hunter, which started an affair between them that lasted over 10 years. Charlamagne was Wendy Williams' sidekick on her radio show when he first began, and he knew Hudson from their home state of South Carolina. Charlamagne also once talked about the rift he had with Hunter and Williams, which had everything to do with Hudson. "The reason Kevin Hunter and I fell out, and the reason why I don't communicate with Wendy anymore is because of Sharina," he told Page Six in 2019. "Kevin got upset because he thought Sharina liked one of my homeboys, and he thought that I was hooking Sharina up [with other men] ... Mind you, Kevin was married to Wendy at the time."
Then in the same year of Charlamagne's interview, a much talked about photo surfaced that showed Hudson and Hunter lounging on what looked like a beach, and Hunter was ripped for the pic on social media afterward. The Daily Mail reported that Hudson wanted Hunter to leave his wife and gave him an ultimatum to do so, but he couldn't because Williams paid his bills. The talk show host kept mum about the cheating rumors on her show at first, which she was criticized for since gossip is a regular topic on The Wendy Williams Show.
Kevin Hunter's cheating led to a child being born
Over time, as the cheating rumors surrounding Kevin Hunter grew louder, it seemed that his name became synonymous with mistreating Wendy Williams — and it only got worse when Sharina Hudson got pregnant with his child. In fact, in 2018, Love B. Scott wrote about the pregnancy, causing Williams' attorney to send them a cease and desist letter. At the time, it seemed like the former radio host was either in denial about Hudson being with-child or she just didn't want to see it in the press.
But none of that mattered because just three months after the cease and desist letter was sent, Hudson gave birth to a girl in a Philadelphia hospital. WHUR 96.3 reports that Hunter used a different name when he checked into the hospital and at that point, Williams was still quiet about the affair so she spoke nothing of Hudson giving birth. But that changed in June of 2019 when the TV host spoke with TMZ. "Look, my husband had a full baby with a woman he was involved with for 15 years ... where I was cooped up only to be a show pony. Now, I'm living my life," she stated.
Kevin Hunter bought a secret house for Sharina Hudson
If you've paid attention to the way affairs go down on television or in the movies, then you know a hotel is often involved. Then at some point, you see two people coming outside freshly showered, with wet hair, right before they get into their separate cars and drive off. But Kevin Hunter didn't have to go the hotel route when he cheated, because he secretly bought Sharina Hudson a house less than 10 miles from the home he shared with Wendy Williams.
Rumors of the house made headlines, but Williams kept mum about it until addressing it in her Wendy Williams: What A Mess documentary. She also talked about the revenge she took on her ex. "I was cupping my eyes in every window ... I pulled out my spray paint and I spray-painted 'Kevin and Wendy Forever,'" she explained, according to Hollywood Life. "And I had my Gorilla Glue ... and I glued the mailbox closed ... and I spray-painted pink all over it." Then in February 2021, a viewer of The Wendy Williams Show asked the host if she planned to spray-paint the house beforehand or if she just happened to have paint in her car. Williams said that she didn't know about the house until it was reported by TMZ and once finding out she grabbed some paint from one of the departments on her show.
Kevin Hunter and his son exchanged blows
In the early hours of May 22, 2019, Kevin Hunter and Wendy Williams' son, Kevin Hunter Jr., was in police custody. What did he do? He got into a fight with his father in a New Jersey store parking lot and was arrested for assault. As TMZ laid it out, Williams took Kevin Jr. to her home in New Jersey to retrieve something, then left and planned to pick him up later. Kevin Jr., who was 18 years old at the time, didn't know that his dad was in the house, and around midnight they went to a nearby store together. That's when an argument broke out, which is said to be about Kevin Sr. angrily telling his son that he needed to find success without his mother's help.
It was also reported that Kevin Sr. got his son in a headlock during the brawl, and Kevin Jr. belted him in the nose to get free. Then after pleading not guilty, Kevin Jr. appeared in a New Jersey court to face his charge and luckily for the youngster, it was dismissed by prosecutors, as TMZ reported. Plus, father and son seemed to mend their relationship between the fight and court date, because Kevin Jr. walked into court with Kevin Sr., who from the start said he didn't want to press charges against his boy.
Kevin Hunter broke his silence after being fired
One could probably say that April 11, 2019, was a memorable day for those who wanted Wendy Williams to leave Kevin Hunter. That's because, on that day, a report from The Washington Post surfaced that said she filed for divorce. Then just a week later, those same people had another reason to celebrate, because ET reported that Williams fired Hunter as the executive producer of The Wendy Williams Show. The combination of headlines seemed to knock her ex out of his silence because he gave a statement to E! right after. "28 years ago I met an amazing woman: Wendy Williams," he began. "At the time, I didn't realize that she would not only become my wife, but would also change the face of entertainment and the world. I have dedicated most of our lives to the business empire that is Wendy Williams Hunter, a person that I truly love and respect unconditionally."
Yeah, yeah, yeah, but what about the cheating allegations? Hunter eventually got to it but mentioned nothing about Sharina Hudson, their affair, or their love-child. "I am not proud of my recent actions and take full accountability and apologize to my wife, my family and her amazing fans," Hunter stated. "I am going through a time of self-reflection and am trying to right some wrongs."
Wendy Williams checked into a sober living facility
It was an announcement that seemed to shock the entire entertainment industry: Wendy Williams was living in a sober house for some time and was keeping it a secret from just about everybody. She made the announcement on her show after giving the number to the Hunter Foundation, a non-profit that she started with her ex that offered grants for people fighting addiction. Throughout her career, Williams has been candid about her past struggles with substance abuse and spoke about it again while making her announcement. But she never said that checking herself into the facility was due to having a relapse. "You know I've had a struggle with cocaine in my past and I never went to a place to get the treatment," she explained.
The announcement came amid reports that Kevin Hunter was cheating on Williams and that he fathered Sharina Hudson's child, which only seemed to make people even angrier with him. The Daytime Emmy nominee also spoke about her sober house experience in 2019 on The View and said one of the most difficult parts was not being able to talk to her mother or sister about it because she didn't want to "burden" them. Plus, the people at the facility took everyone's phone and locked it away during their stay so there were no phone calls.
Wendy Williams began dating someone 27 years her junior
In June of 2019, Wendy Williams implied that she was dating, which made the Internet go into a frenzy. She made the announcement in a now-deleted Instagram message, and it was one of the first signs that showed she was starting to heal from the split. "Last night was the most beautiful sunset in Sherman Oaks with special people. Thank you, California! You've won me over! ... #oldenoughtobeyourmother #verysexyman #mynewlife," Williams captioned the pic. The man's face wasn't shown in the post, so for a while, there was a big question mark surrounding his identity.
But later TMZ revealed that he was 27-year-old Marc Tomblin — a man arrested for armed robbery in Charlotte, N.C. and "pled guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon" in 2013. Some people online said that Williams' split from Kevin Hunter was clouding her judgment, and Tomblin wasn't the person she should've been seeing. "I am a 54-year-old grown a*s woman. I know what I'm doing," Williams told TMZ when she was spotted with Tomblin in New York City. But the relationship ended after she began dating a doctor. "I'm not on the market anymore ... There's somebody that I'm crazy about," Williams said in July of 2019 (via Page Six). "It's not who you think, okay? Mother doesn't deal with children, but it just so happens that I guess with my charm and wit, I attract people of all ages."
Wendy Williams called her ex a 'serial cheat'
In a 2021 interview on SiriusXM's The Jess Cagle Show, Wendy Williams called Kevin Hunter a "serial cheat" and said she knew about his ways from the "beginning" of their relationship. She also said that he cheated on her while she was pregnant with their son. But that wasn't the first time Williams talked about Hunter's cheating history, she also did it in her 2001 autobiography Wendy's Got the Heat (via E!).
Back in 2013, during an interview with VladTV, the celeb explained that Hunter also cheated when her son was just 1-month old. "I overheard some greasy talk from the next room," Williams explained. "'Well, who is he talking to?' I tipped and I crept and I heard what I heard. I was like 'Wow, okay, so this is how it's going down?'" But Wendy said the incident made her marriage "stronger" because they confronted it head-on. But despite all the cheating and heartache Williams went through with her ex, she told People in 2021 that she has "no regrets" about meeting and falling in love with him, nor staying married for over 20 years.
Wendy Williams and Kevin Hunter worked awfully close together
Kevin Hunter and Wendy Williams worked incredibly close together, seeing that Hunter was his ex's manager and executive producer of The Wendy Williams Show. During his stint, it was said that he was a horrible business partner for Williams and often made things difficult for her at work. For example, in 2008 when she was still a radio host on New York's WBLS, a talent booker named Nicole Spence accused Hunter of sexually harassing her, according to the New York Post. Spence also claimed to see Hunter physically abuse his ex at the radio station, stating, "In one instance, Mr. Hunter stormed into the studio, demanded that other employees leave and openly physically abused Ms. Williams, pinning her against the wall with his hand around her neck, choking her while repeatedly pounding his fist into the wall directly by her head."
Williams denied the allegations at the time, calling Spence "out of her mind." She also denied that Hunter physically abused her in the Wendy Williams: What A Mess documentary, saying that he was only "emotionally abusive," (via The Sun). It's also been said that Hunter made things challenging for Williams at The Wendy Williams Show, and the staff there called him horrible to work with, according to TMZ. Additionally, those same employees said it was a "breath of fresh air" after Hunter was terminated.
Wendy Williams' ex wanted child support
Kevin Hunter didn't respond right away when Wendy Williams filed for divorce in April 2019, as it took him a month to do so. But when he did, he asked the court for his ex-wife to pay alimony, child support, and Kevin Jr.'s college tuition. After the news surfaced, many blasted Hunter online, especially for child support since Kevin Jr. was nearly 19-years-old at the time (via TMZ).
Back when Williams filed, she told the courts that she wanted an "appropriate amount of child support," as well as "other further relief as the Court deems fair and equitable," which was reported by Page Six. Then in October of 2019, it was reported that Williams was ordered to pay her ex $250,000 so he could get a new place to live, as he was told to move out of their Livingston, N.J. home. The former couple also split the money after their house was sold in 2020 for $1.475 million, according to Variety.
Wendy Williams wanted to leave Kevin early on
Wendy Williams' divorce may have been finalized in 2020, but she's been planning it for almost 20 years, based on what she told Insider. "I went into the delivery room knowing in my mind, 'I'm planning my divorce,'" she explained. "He cheated when I dated him. He cheated when I married him. He cheated while I was on bed rest during the entire nine months of me being pregnant ... The bigger the talk show got, and the more I would look into my son's eyes ... the more I decided to give of myself and I figured I'd get it on the back end."
During an interview with Extra's Billy Bush in January 2021, the talk show host said Sharina Hudson was just one of many mistresses that Kevin Hunter had during their relationship but the only difference was that he stuck with her the longest. "I knew, Billy, it was not 'till death do us part," Williams stated.