The Unspoken Feud: How Katt Williams’ ‘Raw Comedy’ Destroyed a Career and Triggered an Alleged Gun Chase—The Wanda Smith Saga Resurfaces

In the volatile landscape of modern celebrity, an apology often fails to clear the slate; instead, it can act as a magnet for past sins. This is the paradoxical reality facing legendary comedian Katt Williams. Following his heartfelt, widely publicized apology to Michael Jackson’s family for jokes he made in the past, the internet immediately pivoted, not to praise, but to a demand for accountability over his most brutal and consequential feud: the 2018 on-air clash with the late Atlanta talk show host, Wanda Smith.

The storm surrounding Katt Williams is back in full swing, propelled by an unforgiving online mob. People are not only dragging him for the infamous interview where he roasted Wanda Smith live on her own show, leaving the entire studio stunned, but they are also claiming he “destroyed the career she built for decades.” The anger has escalated into calls for Williams to apologize to Wanda’s family following her tragic passing in October 2024, creating a fierce public debate: was this simply the unbridled spirit of a savage comic, or did Williams truly cross a line, instigating a chain of events that culminated in humiliation, career devastation, and an alleged off-air violent confrontation?

The Apology Paradox: A Hypocrite’s Demand

Williams’ regret regarding his Michael Jackson jokes was framed within a larger societal critique. He spoke candidly about regretting all the jokes he cracked about MJ in his old specials, realizing that he shouldn’t have mocked him at all. More critically, Williams argued that the industry had a “darker agenda” aimed at pushing “black men to tear each other down for laughs,” and he admitted to playing right into that agenda.

But the moment Williams showed this vulnerability, the internet saw not honesty, but hypocrisy. Critics immediately branded him as such, dragging up every past feud, with the Wanda Smith saga topping the list. Users were ruthless, with one writing, “Cat Williams is a POS for what he did to Wanda Smith,” while another recalled, “I remember when Cat went in on Wanda and Atlanta laughed right along with him.” The public was demanding that if he could apologize for mocking a deceased legend, he must certainly apologize for an attack that many believe led directly to a working woman’s ruin.

The irony is thick: Williams expressed remorse for tearing down his own kind, only to have the internet use an alleged instance of him tearing down his own kind to tear him down.

The Infamous On-Air Inferno

The 2018 interview on V103 Atlanta started with Williams in attack mode, criticizing the industry’s selection process for Black female comedians. His target was Tiffany Haddish, whom he argued was “hyped up” while other talented Black female comedians were “sidelined.” He claimed Haddish was picked not for her talent, but because she was a “safe option,” handpicked to appeal to white audiences.

Williams didn’t mince words, explaining that Haddish blew up for two very specific and controversial reasons: she talks non-stop about dating white men and she has lighter skin. This explosive claim caused the vibe in the studio to shift instantly.

It was at this point that Wanda Smith, attempting to defend Haddish and her own show’s integrity, jumped in, cutting him off and arguing that Haddish blew up because “she’s real.” Williams, however, claimed that the tension spiraled completely out of control because Smith allegedly broke a pre-interview agreement. According to Williams’ later account on Club Shay Shay in 2024, Wanda had promised she wouldn’t bring up his kids or his past legal run-ins. Yet, the moment he mentioned Tiffany Haddish, she went straight there, dragging his children and jail time right into the mix.

This breach of trust turned the interview into a one-man, savage Katt Williams show. When Smith tried to “save face by switching gears,” tossing a random question about his cooking skills for his kids, Williams flipped it back, firing off roast after roast like he was headlining a comedy special. Smith tried to keep her cool, but she was visibly struggling beneath the surface, eventually trying to fight back by dragging up Williams’ old legal problems and taking shots at his hair. It all backfired. Williams tore through her jabs like nothing, roasting her into the ground.

The final straw for many came when Wanda threw a low-blow jab near the end of the interview, calling Williams “Lil Mama” and even hinting he might be gay. Williams shut that down immediately with a sharp clapback that silenced the whole studio. The humiliation on her own turf was palpable and, as reports later suggested, unforgivable to Smith.

From Comedy to Chaos: The Alleged Gun Chase

The confrontation didn’t end when the cameras stopped rolling; it escalated into real-life chaos. Williams later claimed that Wanda and her husband, Lamorris Sasser, actually “tried to run up on him” in real life over the roast.

The explosive off-air incident occurred on September 15, 2018, outside the Atlanta Comedy Theater. Wanda’s husband stormed into the parking lot, and according to witnesses, “he came strapped.” Security footage later surfaced showing the heated moments, culminating in Sasser chasing Williams through the lot. While Lamorris admitted chasing Williams, he initially swore he never pointed a gun, claiming he only dropped it by accident while running. Wanda backed him up on her radio show, saying her husband was only stepping in to protect her.

But TMZ stepped in and changed the narrative, dropping security footage that clearly showed Lamorris Sasser holding a gun and running after Katt Williams as the comedian bolted into a nearby grocery store for safety. The image of a world-famous comedian being chased by a host’s husband with a firearm turned the drama from comedy fodder into a grave criminal matter. Williams later claimed on Club Shay Shay that he believed the whole thing was a setup—that Wanda and her people literally tried to get him “taken out over a single joke.”

The Career Fallout and Public Silence

The fallout was swift and devastating for Wanda Smith. By January 2019, she was suddenly fired from V103 Atlanta. While the station never gave an explicit reason, the streets immediately linked her exit to the drama, specifically the “Lil Mama and gay jokes she threw at Cat.” In a city like Atlanta, with one of the largest Black LGBTQ+ communities in the country, using such insults on-air was seen by many as the fatal mistake that sealed her fate.

Katt Williams, surprisingly, kept his mouth shut. Not a single word or comment was made by him regarding Wanda’s termination. It wasn’t until his seismic appearance on Club Shay Shay in January 2024 that Williams finally broke his silence and presented his side: he claimed Wanda was purposely trying to humiliate him in front of her gay fan base, and that this was the real reason she ended up losing her job and fading from the spotlight.

The Chappelle Doctrine: Free Speech vs. Cancel Culture

In the middle of this resurfaced storm stands another titan of comedy: Dave Chappelle. Chappelle himself jumped in to defend Williams, framing Wanda’s situation not as a malicious attack, but as “raw comedy.” According to Chappelle, Williams was simply “doing what he’s always done: firing back when somebody tries to clown him.”

Chappelle, a comedian who has faced his own fierce cancellation attempts over jokes about the trans community, blasted fans for digging through old interviews just to find something to cancel someone over, especially when it’s “drama from years ago.” He has consistently argued that comedy is the “final frontier of free speech” and no comedian should ever let cancel culture silence their voice. Williams’ situation, where a joke allegedly leads to a physical threat, aligns perfectly with Chappelle’s core message: stop the outrage over words when real harm and danger are involved.

Chappelle has long considered comedy the “noblest of professions,” one where you can use everything you know, and more—”don’t be afraid, don’t let these bitch ass niggas button your lip, say it anyway.” This doctrine frames Williams’ actions as a necessary, if brutal, defense of the art form itself.

Tragedy and The Final Silence

The story took its darkest turn in October 2024, when Wanda Smith tragically passed away, just one day after celebrating her 58th birthday.

Katt Williams remained absolutely silent. No condolences, no public statement, nothing. Fans were immediately split. Some argued Williams made the right call, believing any public message would have been labeled “fake” or performative. Others vehemently blasted him, claiming his silence was proof that he felt no remorse for the woman whose career—and perhaps her life—got tragically tangled in his comedy crossfire. The question of whether Williams ever reached out privately remains a mystery.

The fact that social media is digging up this old feud years later, trying to cancel Williams when he almost lost his life over a joke, highlights the paradox Chappelle warned about: cancel culture tearing comedy apart piece by piece. The saga of Katt Williams and Wanda Smith is more than just a celebrity feud; it’s a searing case study on the boundaries of humor, the destructive power of online outrage, and the high price paid when raw comedy spills over into real-world violence. The question remains open: Does Katt Williams owe an apology to Wanda Smith’s family, or is the demand for one simply an example of an internet mob reaching too far into old, painful drama just to try and cancel him?