The talk-show host reminded people that while she may be sweet, she’s from Chicago and doesn’t play about disrespect.
The Shakespeare play unfolding onstage wasn’t the only drama in the building on Sunday during the opening night of “Othello,” starring Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal on Broadway.
Speaking on her talk show the next day, Sherri Shepherd revealed that while attending the big night, an unnamed celebrity confronted her leading to a slightly heated exchange.
“I wanna talk about this unnamed celebrity and what she did to me,” the 57-year-old talk show host told her live audience as a still from the play appeared behind her.
Shepherd recalled attending opening night and chatting with notables from Black Hollywood, including Devale Ellis and his wife Khadeen, when the “unnamed celebrity” approached and grabbed Shepherd’s arm and forcefully turned her around.
“I’m in a good mood. So I go, ‘Hi, what’s going on?’ Because I know her. And she says to me, she goes, ‘You’ve been shading me a lot,’” Shepherd explained, adding that when she became confused by the unnamed celebrity’s accusation, she pushed back. The unnamed celebrity insisted Shepherd had been shading her recently before Shepherd said she walked off.
The initial encounter left Shepherd so “mad” that by the show’s intermission, she was ready for another encounter, only this time in the ladies’ room.
“I was really mad, and I said, You know what? You don’t freaking get to do that to me. So I went to the bathroom during intermission, I stood there for 15 minutes waiting for a meeting in the ladies’ room,” she said semi-jokingly. “People get stuff confused. I’m so sweet. I’m a praying person. If you need some, I’ll give you some scriptures. I’ll make you feel good. But I’m also from Chicago, okay? I don’t play like that.”
Shepherd believes that the unnamed celebrity may have confused her for someone else because she genuinely has not shaded this person on her show or any other platform of hers.
“Matter of fact, when something scandalous came up about you, I was on your side when it happened,” Shepherd said, addressing the unnamed celebrity. “So I would say to the unnamed celebrity, because we’ve known each other a long time, come sit on my couch so we can talk about it.”
While she did not name her, a source reportedly told Page Six that the unnamed celebrity was actress Nia Long. However, Shepherd’s co-host and bestie, Jawn Murray, noted that the unnamed celebrity in question might be from Chicago like Shepherd, while Long is from Brooklyn.
Many celebrities attended the star-studded opening night, including Angela Bassett, Nicole Ari Parker, Danielle Brooks, Sunny Hostin, Gayle King, Ariana DeBose, Rosie Perez, Jennifer Lopez, Martha Stewart, Jill and Joe Biden, and “Othello” co-producer Kandi Burruss.
