Ellen DeGeneres hits out about getting ‘kicked out of show business’: ‘I’m mean, old and gay’
Ellen DeGeneres has returned to the stage for her new stand-up show Ellen’s Last Stand… Up Tour. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for Live Nation)
Ellen DeGeneres has complained about getting “kicked out of show business” in a new stand-up routine, following her long-running talk show coming to an end amid ongoing controversies about staff treatment.
During the opening night of Ellen’s Last Stand… Up Tour, at Largo at the Coronet Theater, in Los Angeles, last week, DeGeneres joked about the end of her long-running talk show.
The final episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show aired in May 2022, after 19 seasons.
“Oh yeah, I got kicked out of show business. There’s no mean people in show business,” she told the audience.
She went on to refer to the cancellation of her 1990s sitcom, Ellen, after she come out as a lesbian in 1997. “For those of you keeping score, this is the second time I’ve been kicked out… eventually they’re going to kick me out for a third time because I’m mean, old and gay.”
Why did The Ellen DeGeneres Show end?
The Ellen DeGeneres Show faced controversy in 2020 when former employees told BuzzFeed News of alleged racist comments and a “toxic” environment on set.
Several former and current members of staff claimed that DeGeneres’ optimistic and happy personality was “bulls**t” that “only happens when the cameras are on”. There were also allegations of racism, bullying and harassment being rampant behind the scenes of the daytime talk show.
There were also claims of sexual misconduct. After an internal investigation, three producers were fired, and DeGeneres made an emotional apology to staff.
She then voluntarily pulled the plug on the show in May 2021, saying at the time that she is a “creative person” who constantly needs to “be challenged”, and the show was “not a challenge any more”.
What is Ellen DeGeneres doing now?
DeGeneres has now returned to stand-up – where she flourished in the early 1980s.
The comedian performed for the first time in nearly two years last Thursday (25 April), revealing that a Netflix special will be taped in the autumn.
What happened between Ellen DeGeneres and Justin Bieber?
In 2020, following the news breaking about a “toxic” environment on the set of her show, DeGeneres faced further controversy after grilling Justin Bieber about when he and wife Hailey will have children.
Ellen DeGeneres bluntly asked: “How many kids are you going to have and when?”
Bieber responded: “I’m going to have as many as Hailey is wishing to push out. I’d love to have myself a little tribe. But, yeah, it’s her body and whatever she wants to do.”
“What are you all waiting for? You know you love kids. You’re so good with kids. What’s the holdup?” DeGeneres then said.
Bieber went on to say that his wife has goals she wants to achieve before starting a family.
DeGeneres was criticised by viewers following the show for her invasive, brusque and “tone-deaf” questioning, The Independent reported.
Others recalled a 2008 interview with Mariah Carey, in which the host pushed the pop queen into revealing miscarriage, pressuring her to sip champagne to “toast not being pregnant”.
One person wrote: “I thought Ellen had learned her lesson… by the awkwardness seen in Justin Bieber’s face, you crossed the line again, like with Mariah Carey.”
