*“The Wendy Williams Show” is going on hiatus “indefinitely” as a precaution amid the growing coronavirus pandemic.
Show producers informed staffers in a memo on Thursday, which was obtained by Deadline:
To Our Dedicated Wendy Show Staff:
The safety and well-being of our employees is our top priority. Considering the current escalation of the Coronavirus, production will be put on hold, indefinitely. However, the office will remain open for you to pick up any materials or personal items. In place of live shows we will air repeats and we will continue to monitor the situation with the CDC and city officials to determine the best time to return and produce live shows again. Thank you for everything you do and please stay safe!
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It was previously reported that amidst growing concerns about the virus, Wendy’s talk show would have no in-studio audience until further notice.
“Wendy values her co-hosts and their daily participation but in light of the current health climate, The Wendy Williams Show will not have a live studio audience until further notice,” a spokesperson for the show said in a statement to PEOPLE. “We will continue to produce a daily live talk show and look forward to welcoming the studio audience back when the time is right.”
On Wednesday’s show, staffers filled the audience.
“These are the people who support me and this entire production every day,” Williams said. “And the ones who aren’t here, it’s only because they’re in the control room pushing buttons or answering the front phone.”
As noted by TV Line, “The Wendy Williams Show” is the latest production to shut down in response to the virus. NBC also announced that both “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and “Late Night With Seth Meyers” are going on hiatus.
In related news, several highly anticipated films are being pushed back over coronavirus concerns, including the Universal Pictures film “Fast & Furious 9,” which had originally been scheduled to hit theaters over the Memorial Day weekend, but is now being moved to April 2021, urbanhollywood411.com reports.
“The Lovebirds” romantic comedy, starring Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani, was set to drop next month, but has also been delayed by Paramount Pictures.
Paramount’s horror sequel “A Quiet Place Part II” will also get a new release date “once we have a better understanding of the impact of this pandemic on the global theatrical marketplace,” said the studio.
The latest installment in the James Bond franchise, “No Time to Die,” has been moved from April to November.
