Gary Owen Reveals Details Of Date With Wendy Williams On 'Club Shay Shay'
Gary Owen opened up about his date with Wendy Williams during his recent "Club Shay Shay" interview.
When asked by host Shannon Sharpe if he ever dated Williams, Owen shared that he had dinner with her at least once three years ago.
The 49-year-old comedian and actor recalled how the former talk show host asked him out to dinner right after his guest appearance on "The Wendy Williams Show" in June 2021.
Following a flirty exchange on her talk show, Owen said Williams called him off the air and told him she was indeed interested in him.
(Photo : Getty Images/Astrid Stawiarz)
Owen -- who was in the middle of a divorce battle with his now ex-wife Kenya Duke at the time -- said Williams clarified that it was "just dinner" and that it would be "public."
Williams also reportedly said they would be joined by other people for the meal.
Owen said he accepted her invitation, explaining: "Why wouldn't I meet her for dinner in a public place?"
"However you feel about Wendy, she's a mogul and she rolled the dice on herself," the comedian told Sharpe. "Why wouldn't I sit down and have dinner with somebody just to talk?"
"And that's all we did," Owen added. "I Ubered to the restaurant, I got there, we talked...I Ubered back to my hotel."
Owen also made it clear that he "didn't sleep with" Williams that night.
When Owen sat down for a chat with Williams on her talk show in 2021, she admitted that she had found him attractive during their first meeting on the set of the 2012 movie "Think Like A Man."
"You never looked at me that way, but I was looking like, 'OK, who is that?'" Williams confessed, as seen in a clip obtained by "The Breakfast Club."
Owen responded that her revelation was "shocking" considering there were many good-looking actors on the set.
While Williams was still married to now ex-husband Kevin Hunter when she and Owen first met, she joked to the comedian that she was "not dead" and insisted that he "stuck out" to her.
During the interview, Williams also asked Owen if he had a girlfriend or had been dating since his split from Duke.
"I belong to the streets now," he jokingly responded, adding, "I think, emotionally, I think I'm just, probably, a little ahead of her as far as, like, you know, disconnecting from the marriage."
Following his "Wendy Williams Show" appearance, Owen and Williams were seen together at the reopening of Scotto in New York City, unnamed insiders told Radar.
The pair appeared to have had a good time together, with the sources saying they were seen talking, smiling, and sharing a laugh during their meal.
Earlier that year, Owen and Duke went their separate ways after nearly two decades of marriage and two kids together.
According to TMZ, Duke filed for divorce in Los Angeles that March.
(Photo : Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Duke has accused Owen of being a deadbeat dad and cheating on her during their marriage.
Owen has denied his ex's accusations. He also claimed on "The Breakfast Club" in 2022 that he was the one who filed for divorce first and that he did so because he had become "unhappy" in his marriage.
"When everything came out, I just stayed quiet, but this whole narrative was, 'I got caught out there, she left me.' That's not what happened," he claimed.
Owen is now engaged to Brianna Johnson, with whom he welcomed twins last year.
