“Mean, Old, and Gay”: Ellen DeGeneres Addresses Toxic Workplace Scandal in Stand-Up Routine

Hollywood star Ellen DeGeneres has spoken out about the toxic workplace scandal which led to her show being cancelled. In a recent stand-up routine in Los Angeles, DeGeneres addressed the damaging accusations against her last year, labelling herself as “mean” and joking that she had been kicked out of show business twice for not conforming to gender roles.
During the performance at The Novo venue on Wednesday night, DeGeneres admitted that being accused of creating a toxic workplace culture damaged how others saw her in Hollywood, claiming: ‘For those of you keeping score, this is the second time I’ve been kicked out of show business… Eventually they’re going to kick me out for a third time because I’m mean, old and gay.’
The comedian also suggested that being both female and homosexual played a role in the vitriol she faced. ‘For those who don’t know this about me – my first day of kindergarten, the popular kids looked at their schedule… They were like: “We have gym today? Who’s taking us to gym?” And I was like: “I will,” because no one asked any girl,’ she joked.
DeGeneres also brought up how her eponymous sitcom in the 1990s was cancelled after revealing that she is gay, adding: ‘There are consequences for not conforming.’
Last year, DeGeneres’ talk show came under fire when allegations of a toxic workplace culture were made against her. Several former employees also accused ousted producers of sexually inappropriate behaviour during their time at the studio behind the series, while one producer was said to have been implicated at its source as early 2019 . DeGeneres faced particular backlash for failing to address these allegations herself until months later.
In May this year, it was announced that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be coming to an end after almost two decades on air – a decision which the comedian admitted left her feeling ‘devastated’. She continued: ‘Honestly, I’m making jokes about what happened to me but it was devastating really.
‘I just hated that the last time people would see me is like this,’ she said during an audience Q&A at The Novo on Wednesday night – her first live show since announcing plans for retirement from TV talk shows. ‘Because I love that show so much and I just hated how it ended.’