Wendy Williams may be used to dishing out the Hot Topics on her daytime talk show, but recently her own life became one of those Hot Topics after it was alleged that her husband, Kevin Hunter, was engaged in an affair.
Williams and Hunter, who tied the knot in 1997 and share 19-year-old son Kevin Jr., have found themselves in the headlines more than just once in past months. After the Ask Wendy author took a more than two-month-long hiatus from The Wendy Williams Show, rumors began to swirl that her nearly 22-year-long marriage was in turmoil.
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According to a number of sources, and as reported by a number of various outlets, Hunter has been linked to Sharina Williams, and their allegedly not-so-secret relationship has grown serious and taken a major toll on Hunter’s marriage.
Keep scrolling to see everything that you should know about the headline-making scandal.
Who is Sharina Hudson
Not much is known about Hunter’s alleged mistress, but sources have claimed that Hudson is a 33-year-old massage therapist from New York City. Those sources told the Daily Mail that Hudson also has her sights set on becoming a businesswoman, which Hunter supports.
“He put her through school to be a massage therapist, he opened a kiosk for her at a mall in North Carolina where she’s from,” a source claimed. “He helped her set up a jewelry and clothing line online called VISH. But none of her businesses have been a success.”
Hudson isn’t a stranger to Williams
Long before a romantic connection was made between Hudson and Hunter, she was partying it up with the married couple at a “blackout party” thrown by Williams and Hunter on December 27, 2007.
Held at Manhattan’s West Village neighborhood’s now-shuttered dance club Dirty Disco, the trio were spotted enjoying a night out on the town when Hudson was then just 21. Partying alongside Charlamagne Tha God and ex-New York Jets star Kerry Rhodes, recently resurfaced photos showed Hudson largely keeping her distance from Williams and Hunter at the party while the married couple remained by one another’s side.
The affair was first revealed in 2017
Although Williams revealed in her 2001 autobiography Wendy’s Got Heat that Hunter had been unfaithful, his alleged affair with Hudson was not revealed until 2017 when several outlets published photos showing him and his alleged mistress spending time with one another in New Jersey.
“Kevin is with Sharina three or four times a week, often staying over,” a source told the Daily Mail at the time. “They go to the gym together, they go out to restaurants together as if they’re a normal couple. But then he goes home to Wendy as if everything is normal there, too. He’s living a double life.”
“They mainly stay in the house and hang out. Kevin isn’t a touchy-feely person so you’d never see them kissing or hugging in public and if they ever see anybody she knows the drill, he introduces her as his sister,” the source added. “Kevin has pretty much trained her so she knows what to do.”
“The alleged affair was uncovered following a exhaustive year-long investigation” that was prompted after it was discovered that Hunter was “splitting his time between the family home in Livingston, New Jersey, and a luxury two-bedroom condo” in Fort Lee, New Jersey.
How long have Hunter and Hudson been together?
Although exactly when their romance first sparked isn’t known, Hunter and Hudson have reportedly been together for 10 years or more, and first drew speculation of romance after they were spotted spending an ample amount of time with one another when not in Williams’ presence.
By 2017, their relationship had become so serious that a source alleged Hunter even promised to one day choose Hudson over his wife.
“Kevin runs the show in their marriage and Wendy never questions him on where he’s been,” a source told the Daily Mail in 2017. “He told Wendy he was going on a business trip for a few days, she didn’t question it at all.”
The source added that Hunter had told Hudson that “he will choose her eventually.”
Hunter reportedly lives only miles away from Williams and Hunter
Although Hunter and Hudson were first rendezvousing at a luxury two-bedroom condo located in Fort Lee, New Jersey, which is just 30-miles away from his and William’s home, it was later revealed that Hunter had moved his mistress closer.
According to public records, in January of 2017, Hunter purchased a new home for $765,000 located just nine-minutes away from his home with Williams. Located in Morristown, New Jersey, Hudson was listed as having moved into the suburban 3,900 square foot single family home in February of that year. At the time of the 2017 report, Hunter was also listed as a resident of the home. The duo were reportedly even spotted coming and going from the property on numerous occasions, and a mailbox outside boasted both of their names along with a third name, Nikki Hudson, who was believed to be one of Hudson’s relatives.
Hudson and Hunter allegedly welcomed a child together
Trouble for Williams and Hunter reached a crux after Hudson reportedly welcomed Hunter’s child at Philadelphia’s Hahnemann University Hospital on or around Monday, March 25. Hunter and his mistress had selected the Philadelphia-based hospital in an attempt to keep the news of the birth from reaching the press.
While the child’s paternity has not been confirmed, and neither Hudson nor Hunter commented on the reports, several sources alleged that the baby was in fact Hunter’s.
“This is a crazy situation, Wendy is in a halfway house fighting for her sobriety, while her husband is at the side of his mistress who is giving birth to a baby. Sharina went into labor on Sunday [and] is believed to have given birth late on Sunday or in the early hours of Monday,” a source said. “Everyone who loves Wendy is heartbroken and furious. Her fans are furious that she lied to them about her health and about what she has been going through.”
The birth came 18-years after Williams stated in her 2001 memoir Wendy’s Got The Heat that Hunter getting another woman pregnant would be among the only things that would cause her to “walk out for good.”
The affair was reportedly the cause of Williams’ 2-month hiatus from ‘The Wendy Williams Show’
Before dozens of headlines popped up across dozens of different outlets about an alleged affair, Williams had announced that she’d be taking an “extended break” from her daytime talk show, The Wendy Williams Show. Although at the time said to be a result of complications related to her Graves’ disease diagnosis, a number of anonymous members of the talk show’s crew later stated that the host’s absence was actually a direct result of trouble in her marriage.
“She’s managed to keep the real reason for her absence a secret, however you can’t leak something that no one knows,” one insider alleged.
“We’re all hoping that she is finally getting her personal life in order and kicking Kevin to the curb so none of us have to deal with him ever again. We’ve kept her secrets for years and dealt with him – but enough is enough,” another said. “She should’ve booted him out when his girlfriend was publicly revealed, but of course she kept living a lie – all is definitely not well in the house of Hunter.”
Williams has denied the affair
In the face of scathing headlines, Williams has remained adamant that her marriage is as strong as ever. Speaking upon her return to The Wendy Williams Show, she addressed the rumors of infidelity.
“I want to shout-out to my husband. I’m still wearing my ring,” she said. “Believe me you, when you’ve been with somebody for 28 years, married for 25 years…we know each other. He’s my best friend, he’s my lover…I know what you’ve been seeing…but hunty, let me show you who I fell in love with and who he fell in love with.”
She went on to add that she’s “still very much in love” with Hunter and that “marriages have ebbs and flows, marriage isn’t easy…It ain’t going anywhere, not in this lifetime.”
Divorce Papers Have Been Filed
On Thursday, April 10, the talk show host’s attorney confirmed that Williams had filed for divorce after 21 years of marriage.
In the days prior to the confirmation, the alleged infidelity in her marriage had reportedly sparked talk of separation between Hunter and William, though it had initially been alleged that the discussions seem to be mostly one-sided.
According to sources, Hunter “has wanted to separate so that they would be free to live their own lives,” but his wife “has begged Kevin to stay with her.”
The couple were said to be “exploring” their options, including separation, and “there is discussion about what happens now – everyone is asking, ‘How can they possibly stay together?’ Wendy still loves Kevin, but her health is at stake.”
Now that they are confirmed to be headed towards divorce, the couple will have to untangle their working relationship, as Hunter has been Williams’ longtime manager and they are partners in Wendy Williams Productions, which produces The Wendy Williams Show.
