Tweet storm

Cher wants Wendy Williams fired over this ‘Wendy Williams Show’ segment

Cher is pissed off — as in, all-caps PISSED OFF.

The singer’s ire is directed at Wendy Williams, whose recent segment about Juaquin Phoenix and cleft lips became an instant source of criticism after it aired last week.

In the bit, Williams noted that she finds the Joker star “oddly attractive,” adding that when he shaves, he has a lip scar. Then she mimed a cleft lip while continuing to talk. “He’s got one of those, what do you call it? Cleft lip. Cleft palate.” Williams and her live audience found it all quite amusing.

You can see the segment below at the 9:40 mark:

Others, like Canadian pro football player Adam Bighill, whose son was born with a cleft palate, were notably less amused.

“This is  @WendyWilliams making fun of the cleft community on her TV show,” he tweeted.

“Are you kidding me??? We all have a responsibility to #EndBullying.”

“With her platform, like myself, we have a much higher responsibility when it comes to our actions. This is just terrible.”

Bighill posted about the incident each day that went by without an apology from Williams.

Along the way he dealt with comments like this:

He also posted about his son, Beau, going into surgery:

That same day — five days after the segment aired, Williams finally apologized, and Bighill appeared to accept the gesture:

Cher, however, did not.

“DOES AN APOLOGY MAKE UP FOR THIS,” she tweeted along with photos of Phoenix and Williams:

She also explained why the issue means so much to her, ending with all call for Williams to be fired.

Don't forget to share:

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated