“I have been kicked out of show business,” Ellen DeGeneres ironically remarks as she presents her new stand-up special, For Your Approval, on one of the largest streaming platforms in the industry.
In this new Netflix special, Ellen opens up about her personal life and reflects on the downfall of her career after the end of her talk show.
Ellen DeGeneres Returns: “For Your Approval” and the Irony of a Netflix Comeback
“The ‘Be Kind’ girl wasn’t kind—that was the headline,” DeGeneres jokes. “Here’s the problem. I’m a comedian who got a talk show, and I ended every episode by saying, ‘Be kind to one another.’ Had I ended the show by saying, ‘Go f*** yourselves,’ people would’ve been pleasantly surprised to find out I’m kind.” Seems like Ellen couldn’t care less about the cancel culture, and neither does the crowd as it erupts in laughter.
After facing toxic workplace allegations on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the 66-year-old comedian announced her final comedy special this May.
“To answer the questions everyone is asking me—Yes, I’m going to talk about it. Yes, this is my last special. Yes, Portia really is that pretty in real life,” she says.
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From Scandal to Stand-Up
During the pandemic, The Ellen DeGeneres Show became embroiled in controversy as former and current staffers anonymously accused Ellen of fostering a toxic work environment, with allegations of sexual misconduct, racism, and intimidation.
Claims included staff being penalized for taking medical leave, racial microaggressions, and fear of retribution for speaking up. After an internal investigation, producers Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman, and co-producer Jonathan Norman were fired, but Ellen’s apology wasn’t enough. The show, one of the most popular in American history, came to an end after 19 seasons.
“I thought if I could make people happy, they’d like me,” Ellen says in the trailer, explaining how comedy became her way of healing childhood wounds. “And if they like me, I’ll feel good about myself. All I can say is, thank God for the money.”
The special has stirred mixed reactions, with many critical. Comments like “Saying you got kicked out of show business ON A NETFLIX SPECIAL STREAMING WORLDWIDE is WILD” and “Complaining about cancel culture on the world’s biggest platform while getting paid hundreds of thousands… The irony” can be read on the Youtube Trailer. Others say, “No way are we giving her a chance after all the stories of her being rude and unpleasant to her team.”
So, what do you think? Will you be tuning in to give Ellen another chance?
