Ellen DeGeneres is back for one more comedy special.
For a long time the massively successful daytime TV show had a reputation in the biz for her positive energy and encouraging her viewers to be kind to one another.
That was until her very public downfall in 2020, when allegations of her creating a toxic workplace began to come out and previous employees of hers shared stories of being mistreated by the TV host.
Naturally these allegations contrasted wildly with the image the TV host had spent years cultivating, and it ultimately led to her talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, getting cancelled.
Now, she’s telling her story of getting “kicked out of show business” for being “mean” in her Netflix special For Your Approval which was filmed at Minneapolis’s Orpheum Theatre in August.
Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval, the final comedy special of her career, premieres September 24. pic.twitter.com/0ivccqzECr
— Netflix (@netflix) September 18, 2024
If you’re not up watching the stand up special but you want to know the goss - fear not! We have you covered.
So what’s Ellen been up to in the 4 years she’s been out of the spotlight? Raising chickens apparently. She also informed the audience that she’s stopped getting Botox and filler, and she’s started going to therapy.
Ellen spoke about one therapist asking why she thought everyone hated her, to which she replied: “Well, the New York Times, Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, Us Weekly.”
The TV host looked back fondly on her time hosting the show, stating that everyone who worked on it was like a family.
“We played tag, and I would chase people down the hallways. I would chase them all around the studio, and I would scare them all the time. I would jump out, and I would scare people ‘cause I love to do that — and you know, hearing myself say this out loud, I realize I was chasing my employees and terrorizing them. I can see where that would be misinterpreted,” she joked.
the intro to the new ellen special is soo ridiculous pic.twitter.com/MkeWLMP7XA
— sam (@samxmcgowan) September 24, 2024
Ellen doesn’t say much more about the allegations that were made against her by previous employees, but she did go on to explain what it was like being kicked out of Hollywood.
“We have all these unwritten rules, based on gender, of acceptable behavior, of who we’re allowed to be, how we’re allowed to act. And if we don’t follow those rules, it makes people uncomfortable. And if people are uncomfortable, there are consequences,” the comedian explained.
“For those of you keeping score, this is the second time I’ve been kicked out of show business,” she added, referring to that time she was blacklisted in the 90s after coming out as gay.
“They say the truth will set you free, and it did: I was free for three years. No one would hire me,” she continued.
So what now for Ellen? Well, For Your Approval is being called her "final" comedy special.
“I’m happy not being a boss or a brand or a billboard, just a person,” she says near the end of the special. “Just a multifaceted person with different feelings and emotions, and I can be happy and sad and compassionate or frustrated. I have OCD and ADD. I’m honest. I’m generous. I’m sensitive and thoughtful. But I’m tough, and I’m impatient, and I’m demanding. I’m direct. I’m a strong woman.”
Some of the reaction to the comedy special so far has called the whole thing “bizarre” and reviews haves called it “unapologetic and unfunny”.
Have you seen Ellen’s stand-up special For Your Approval? Let us know what you thought on our social media!
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