Ellen DeGeneres Laughs Off Idea She’s Mean In Final Stand-Up Special

Ellen DeGeneres laughed off the idea that she was ever mean after being canceled due to “toxic” workplace claims in what she’s called her final stand-up comedy special.

Debuting on Tuesday on Netflix, “Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval” touches on the end of the 66-year-old former talk show host’s career in Hollywood for a second time — this time when her talk show career ended after 19 seasons due to “toxic” workplace claims on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” A Buzzfeed report published in 2020 about “The Ellen Show” claimed it was a “toxic” workplace — full of intimidation and even alleged sexual abuse.

“Alright, let me catch you up on what’s been going on with me since you last saw me,” DeGeneres said in the special. “I got chickens. … Oh yeah, I got kicked out of show business for being mean.”

“I got kicked out of show business. Yeah, because I’m mean. You can’t be mean and be in show business. They’ll kick you out. No mean people in show business,” she joked. “Yeah, y’all heard that I was mean. Everybody heard that I was mean.”

“That was a big story, huh. That had some legs on it,” DeGeneres continued. “The first I heard about it I … I came across a headline that said, ‘How Ellen DeGeneres became the most hated person in America.’ Now I didn’t see the other names on the ballot, but I have to — it’s an impressive title, it really is.”

6 Highlights from Ellen DeGeneres’ Final Stand-Up Specialhttps://t.co/EZQz00id9y pic.twitter.com/zeGauyHN8z

— Ellen World (@EllenD_world) September 24, 2024

The comedian joked that what made it “worse” was “there was no trophy, no awards banquet, nothing. It was quite a shock to me … because for 17 years, there were all these polls that basically said I was one of the most trusted people in the country.”

Am I Racist? Is In Theaters NOW — Get Your Tickets Here!

“Here’s the problem: I’m a comedian who got a talk show and I ended the show every day by saying, ‘Be kind to one another,'” DeGeneres explained. “Yeah, I know, it seemed like a good idea. … Had I ended my show by saying, ‘Go f*** yourselves,’ people would have been pleasantly surprised to find out I’m kind.”

At one point, she talked about how this was her second ousting from show business, the first being in 1997 when she came out as a lesbian.

“Kicked me out before because I told them I was gay. No gay people in show business. They kick you out. Can’t be gay and be in show business,” Ellen joked. “Eventually they’re going to kick me out a third time for being old — mean, old, and gay, the triple crown.”

Near the end of the hour-plus special, DeGeneres looped back around again to being labeled mean.

“Because being in this business, I have had to care what people think,” the comedian said. “Because being a comedian or a host, it’s our only real currency for success … and I have spent an entire lifetime trying to make people happy. And I’ve cared far too much what other people think of me.”

“So, the thought of anyone thinking that I’m mean was devastating to me. And it consumed me for a long time,” she added, noting that with time, we gain perspective. “With perspective, caring what people think, to a degree, is healthy. But not if it affects your mental health.”

“So after a lifetime of caring, I just can’t anymore. So, I don’t,” DeGeneres said. “I have a choice of people remembering me as someone who is mean or someone who is beloved … beloved, I chose that.”

DeGeneres closed the show by saying, “I’m so glad I got to say goodbye on my terms.”

Related: Ellen DeGeneres Announces Final Stand-Up Special Premiere Date