Melissa Joan Hart (left) and La La Anthony.Photo:Astrida Valigorsky/Getty, Jason Mendez/Getty
Astrida Valigorsky/Getty, Jason Mendez/Getty
Melissa Joan HartandLa La Anthonyare joining the ongoing debate about conservatorships with roles in a new Lifetime movie.
Just days after the network dropped its bombshell docuseriesWhere Is Wendy Williams?, which follows the former television host after she was placed under a court-ordered guardianship and continues to struggle with alcohol addiction and health issues, Lifetime announced its new film,Bad Guardian.
Per the film’s official description,Bad Guardianwill detail the story “about one woman’s fight to save her father from the clutches of a corrupt and greedy court-appointed guardian.”
“When Leigh’s (Hart) father Jason (Eric Pierpoint) suffers a fall while she’s out of town, the courts assign Jason a guardian, Janet (Anthony). At first Janet seems to be a big help to Jason, but things quickly take a terrible turn,” reads the synopsis. “Janet is legally in charge of every aspect of Jason’s life, and doesn’t waste any time placing him in a nursing home, auctioning off his house, all worldly possessions, and using the excuse that the proceeds are needed for his care.”
Wendy Williams in December 2019.Manny Carabel/Getty
Manny Carabel/Getty
Though Leigh continues to “challenge Janet’s efforts,” the guardian successfully prevents his family members from visiting while Jason’s health “deteriorates, to the point that he needs a life saving treatment which Janet decides is too expensive.”
“As the whistleblowers around Jason meet untimely ends, Leigh finds the strength to take down the guardian and the corrupt system that supports her,” the synopsis concludes.
In a press release shared with PEOPLE, Diane Dimond, a journalist and author ofWe’re Here to Help – When Guardianship Goes Wrong, reveals that more than “some 2 million Americans” are currently placed under a guardian or conservatorship.
The expert reports that state courts “confiscate over $50 billion from their ward” annually and 98% of people placed into its care “never get out” with “zero federal laws to regulate the guardianship/conservatorship system.”
Bad Guardiancomes as several high profile conservatorships, including that ofBritney SpearsandWendy Williams, continue to raise questions and be discussed in the news.
In November 2021, Spears' 13-year conservatorshipwas terminated. Herfather Jamie, along with a lawyer, controlled the singer’s finances and personal assets through the conservatorship. Spears recently spoke out about the hardships she faced during that time in her bombshell memoir,The Woman in Me.
Britney Spears in 2017.Image Group LA/Disney Channel via Getty
Image Group LA/Disney Channel via Getty
More recently, Williams' life has been under a microscope after Lifetime’s two-part docuseries,Where Is Wendy Williams?aired last weekend, portraying her troubled life and health issues following the end of her eponymous talk show.
Two days ahead of its release, Williams' care team revealedshe had been diagnosedwith progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Williams' family claimed they were kept in the dark about her diagnosis and that they’ve hadlimited contactwith her since she was placed under herlegal guardianshipin May 2022. Williams has been in a facility receiving treatment since April 2023, and while her family says they cannot call her, she can call them.
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The project is expected to air later this year.
source: people.com
