Wendy Williams is apologizing after her recent insensitive comments about Joaquin Phoenix landed her in hot water!
In case you missed it, the 55-year-old made fun of a scar the Joker actor has above his lip on last week’s episode of The Wendy Williams Show.
Related: Wendy Williams Hits Back After Howard Stern Reignites Their Feud!
During the “Hot Topics” segment, Wendy went from praising Joaquin’s “oddly attractive” appearance to poking fun at his cleft lip for… cheap laughs? Who knows.
After noting his memorable performance as Johnny Cash alongside Reese Witherspoon in Walk The Line, the host added:
“He knows how to transform, when he shaves [his beard] off, the way he looks at you. And he’s got the good nose that dips way down, like he’s happy with it and so am I. When he shaves off his mustache, he’s got a hairline fracture, he’s got one of those — what do you call it? Cleft lip, cleft palate.”
She paused to actually lift her upper lip before continuing:
“He’s got this. I find it to be very attractive.”
We know Williams loves to stir the pot with her hot takes, but this was not a good look, at all!
While Joaquin has not publicly responded to the jab, plenty of others have slammed the talk show host for engaging in such hurtful and offensive behavior.
We should mention, Phoenix has never said he had a cleft lip or palate. In an October 2019 Vanity Fair profile, it was reported that his scar was “not a surgically fixed cleft, he says, but a nonsurgical scar he was born with.”
People are pissed…
Cher, who is an ally to the cleft palate community, was quick to rip Wendy a new one on Twitter!
Replying to a fan who shared several pictures of the singer with fans who live with the abnormality, she wrote:
“THESE ARE THE PPL @WendyWilliams IS MAKING FUN OF. Joaquin Phoenix was a Child,& We Don’t Know What He Had To Go Through. HE IS ONE OF THE GREAT ACTORS OF OUR TIME,MAGNETIC,& MORE THAN HANDSOME!! SHE WILL BE JUDGED FOR THIS FOREVER.”
The controversial comments also caught the attention of Canadian football player Adam Bighill, whose baby boy Beau just underwent cleft palate repair surgery. The athlete, for his part, appeared to denounce Williams as a bully:
“Waiting for an apology and donation from @WendyWilliams and since we are still waiting, this campaign has gone viral. This campaign/message is all centered around one thing we all agree on, bullying is awful. Thank you all for being a part of the difference #end bullying”
Wendy’s Remorse…
After those and countless other angry complaints online, Wendy then issued an apology which reads:
“We’re thinking about Beau today as he is in surgery. I want to apologize to the cleft community and in Beau’s honor, our show is donating to @operationsmile and @AmerCleftPalate and encourage our Wendy Watchers to learn more and help support the cleft community.”
Okay. So, not only is she sorry, but she put her money where her mouth is, too. Commendable, right? Of course, we’re sure those organizations would’ve still appreciated the monetary donation without the extra dramatics on last week’s show.
To that point, Cher was not pleased and continued her tirade against the former shock jock and tweeted:
“THERE IS NO APOLOGY FOR WHAT SHE DID…& LAUGHED ABOUT !! I KNOW THESE CHILDREN,& ADULTS.THEY GO THROUGH HELL,THEIR PARENTS GO THROUGH HELL !! Fk Her Apology. SHE WANTS TO KEEP HER JOB !! I CANT CONTAIN MY ANGER !!”
The 73-year-old pop legend was not ready to back down, either, with another tweet seen HERE.
Meanwhile, Bighill has publicly accepted the star’s apology and wrote:
“Thank you @WendyWilliams for your apology, your donation, and for thinking of Beau today for his surgery. I forgive you, and I encourage others to as well. I wish you all the best.”
Where do YOU stand, Perezcious readers? Do YOU forgive Wendy? Let us know by sounding OFF in the comments section (below)!
[Image via WENN/Instar]
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