‘Wendy Williams Show’ Delayed After Williams Tests Positive for COVID-19 Amid Ongoing ‘Health Evaluations’

You’ll have to wait a little longer to see new episodes of The Wendy Williams Show. On Wednesday, the show announced on its official Instagram account that the Season 13 premiere would be delayed after Wendy Williams tested positive for a breakthrough case of COVID-19. As PEOPLE noted, the new season is now expected to premiere on Monday, Oct. 4. 

The show shared that amid other health evaluations, Williams tested positive for COVID-19. They explained that the show would be delayed in order to give the host an adequate amount of time to recover from the illness. The talk show’s Instagram account also noted that they would be delaying the premiere in order to adhere to SAG/AFTRA and DGA’s COVID-19 guidelines. As a result, the series will be airing repeats until its October premiere.

This update comes a few days after the show announced that Williams would not be making any public appearances in order to promote the new season of her program. They stated that she would not be making these public appearances due to “ongoing health issues,” but stressed that she was still looking forward to appearing on the series. Their statement read, “Wendy is dealing with some ongoing health issues and is undergoing further evaluations. She will not be able to complete her promotional activities next week, but can’t wait to be back in her purple chair Monday, September 20th for the 13th season premiere.”

The series did not specify what health issues Williams is dealing with. Back in 2018, the host did reveal that she had Graves disease. At the time, she said that she had been diagnosed with the illness about two decades prior. After taking some time off from her show in order to get her health on track, Williams said that she was feeling better, according to PEOPLE.

“I feel a hundred percent better than I was a few months ago. I had a storm going in my body is the best way I can explain it,” she said. “It came from me neglecting my six-month endocrinology appointment. I have Graves’ disease and hyperthyroid. If you have one you don’t necessarily have to have the other, but I have both, and I was diagnosed with both 19 years ago.” Although, in 2020, she took time off from her show, with the series stating that she was taking that time in order to deal with symptoms from her illness.