Ellen DeGeneres is kicking off season 18 of her daytime talk show with a virtual audience—and an apology. On Monday, she returned to the set of The Ellen DeGeneres Show for the first time since the pandemic caused the series to go virtual earlier this year. DeGeneres began by addressing the recent investigation into misconduct allegations behind-the-scenes of her show.
“As you may have heard, this summer there were allegations of a toxic work environment at our show and then there was an investigation. I learned that things happened here that never should have happened,” DeGeneres she told an audience of virtual screens. “I take that very seriously and I want to say I am so sorry to the people who were affected. I know that I’m in a position of privilege and power and I realized that with that comes responsibility, and I take responsibility for what happens at my show,” she continued. “This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show, I am Ellen DeGeneres. My name is there, my name is there, my name is on underwear. We have had a lot of conversations over the last few weeks about the show, our workplace, and what we want for the future. We have made the necessary changes and today we are starting a new chapter.”
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DeGeneres’ return comes about a month after rumors circulated that she wanted to leave her longtime post as talk show host. Speculation about her exit followed a summer of controversy for the high-profile figure. Variety reported in late July that WarnerMedia would conduct an investigation into the workplace culture at Ellen and “interview current and former staffers about their experiences on set.” The controversy began with a BuzzFeed News report that detailed accounts from 10 former employees and one current employee about sexual harassment, racism, and unjust termination they’d experienced from executive producers at the show.
In a memo to her staff, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, DeGeneres wrote: “As we’ve grown exponentially, I’ve not been able to stay on top of everything and relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I’d want them done. Clearly some didn’t. That will now change and I’m committed to ensuring this does not happen again.”
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Three senior producers— executive producers Ed Glavin and Kevin Leman, and co-executive producer Jonathan Norman—were ousted as a result of the investigation. Per Variety, no “systemic” racism was found on the show following an inquiry, but DeGeneres promised to increase the show’s representation and “participate in diversity and inclusion workshops.” She also vowed to promote the show’s “DJ” Stephen “tWitch” Boss to co-executive producer, a move DeGeneres announced again during the first show.
She also spoke about the origins of her episode sign-off “Be kind to one another” and spoke about the difficulties she’s faced in being branded the “Be kind lady.” DeGeneres explained, “Being known as the ‘Be kind’ lady is a tricky position to be in. So, let me give you some advice out there if anybody’s thinking of changing their title or giving yourself a nickname, do not go with the ‘Be kind’ lady. Don’t do it. The truth is, I am that person that you see on TV,” she said, referencing reports she cultivated a different onscreen persona than her real-life personality. “I am also a lot of other things. Sometimes I get sad, I get mad, I get anxious, I get frustrated, I get impatient. And I am working on all of that. I am a work in progress.”
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The host also referenced the pandemic, social unrest surrounding systemic racism, and the wildfires along the West Coast in her opening remarks. “This has been a horrible summer for people all around the world,” DeGeneres said. “People are losing their jobs, people are losing loved ones to a pandemic, people are losing their homes and lives in raging fires that are going on. There’s blatant racial injustice all around us. I watch the news and I feel like, where do we even begin? So my hope is that we can still be a place of happiness and joy. I still want to be the one hour a day that people can go to escape and laugh. I want to continue to help all the people that we help every day. And I’m committed to making this the best season that we have ever had.”
Read a transcript from DeGeneres’ first monologue back, here:
As you may have heard, this summer there were allegations of a toxic work environment at our show and then there was an investigation. I learned that things happened here that never should have happened. I take that very seriously and I want to say I am so sorry to the people who were affected. I know that I’m in a position of privilege and power and I realized that with that comes responsibility, and I take responsibility for what happens at my show. This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show, I am Ellen DeGeneres. My name is there, my name is there, my name is on underwear. We have had a lot of conversations over the last few weeks about the show, our workplace, and what we want for the future. We have made the necessary changes and today we are starting a new chapter.
There were also articles in the press and on social media that said that I am not who I appeared to be on TV, because I became known as the “Be kind” lady. And here’s how that happened: I started saying, “Be kind to one another” after a young man named Tyler Clementi took his own life after being bullied for being gay. I thought the world needed more kindness and it was a reminder that we all needed that, and I think we need it more than ever right now. Being known as the “Be kind” lady is a tricky position to be in. So, let me give you some advice out there if anybody’s thinking of changing their title or giving yourself a nickname, do not go with the “Be kind” lady. Don’t do it. The truth is, I am that person that you see on TV.
I am also a lot of other things. Sometimes I get sad, I get mad, I get anxious, I get frustrated, I get impatient. And I am working on all of that. I am a work in progress, and I’m especially working on the impatience thing because, and it’s not going well, because it’s not happening fast enough I will tell you that.
Listen, you know, I don’t know, I am a talk show host and you know that, but maybe some of you know that, you know, I was an actress. I’ve played a straight woman in movies so I’m a pretty good actress. But I don’t think that I’m that good that I could come out here every day for 17 years and fool you. This is me and my intention is to always be the best person I can be. And if I’ve ever let someone down, if I’ve ever hurt their feelings, I am so sorry for that. If that’s ever the case, I have let myself down and I’ve hurt myself as well because I always try to grow as a person. I look at everything that comes into my life as an opportunity to learn. I got into this business to make people laugh and feel good, that’s my favorite thing to do. That and Jenga, I love that game.
And now I am a boss of 270 people, 270 people who helped make this show what it is. 270 people who I am so grateful for. All I want is for every single one of them to be happy and to be proud to work here. This has been a horrible summer for people all around the world. People are losing their jobs, people are losing loved ones to a pandemic, people are losing their homes and lives in raging fires that are going on. There’s blatant racial injustice all around us. I watch the news and I feel like, where do we even begin? So my hope is that we can still be a place of happiness and joy. I still want to be the one hour a day that people can go to escape and laugh. I want to continue to help all the people that we help every day. And I’m committed to making this the best season that we have ever had.
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