On September 24, Ellen DeGeneres’ final comedy special, Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval, dropped on Netflix. Her special was widely anticipated—not only would it be her final project in her career, but the public was waiting for Ellen to address the slew of accusations of her fostering a toxic work environment. The title of the special is a nod to how Ellen responds to those claims; instead of looking inward and taking accountability, the former talk show host focuses solely on how the backlash impacted her. We’re here to break down her analysis (or lack thereof) of her fall from grace.
The special opens with an emotional montage of Ellen’s career, taking us through her success with the Ellen Show, her historic moment of coming out as lesbian in the 90s, and ending with an onslaught of media snippets about the different allegations. Ellen enters the stage and eases into her routine with a bit about parallel parking, windshield wipers, and other car features.
After warming up the crowd, she talks about how she’s been spending her time after “getting kicked out of show business.” Ellen chronicles her experiences raising chickens, lovingly talking about how “they see me. They recognize me when I walk toward them, and they run to me.” If only Ellen held that same energy for her employees, but alas.
When Ellen finally went on to address the elephant of the room, the way she went about it felt more self-serving than accountable. Here are some key attitudes Ellen has about her cancellation:
“They’re calling me mean”
She distilled the claims of her toxic work environment down to people simply calling her mean, quipping “you can’t be mean in show business.” However, Ellen failed to list some of the specific claims about her work environment that raise issues way more important than being rude (such as reports by former and current employees describing an atmosphere of racism, intimidation, and fear).
The media is attacking Ellen
When her therapist asked her why she felt like people hated her, Ellen told us, she responded “the New York Times, the Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, US Weekly…”
It’s understandable to be overwhelmed from seeing one’s name attached to articles by major news corporations alongside allegations of workplace misconduct. However, it’s not accurate to describe those pieces as hate.
The New York Times discussed WarnerMedia’s investigation of the Ellen Show’s workplace. Entertainment Weekly and US Weekly reported on specific allegations from employees. The Washington Post issued an opinion piece on the pitfalls of turning kindness into a brand.
All of these articles were simply laying out the facts of the situation. There was no “we hate Ellen” campaign led by major news outlets. Calling out bad behavior is not the same thing as promoting hatred, and framing it that way is, intentionally or not, dishonest.
It’s just a prank
The only specific example Ellen gave about her work environment was her tendency to prank her employees. She recounted instances of chasing people around the studio in an ongoing game of tag, or scaring an employee with fake snakes. Ellen shrugged it off, joking that it sounds really bad saying it out loud, and said that she was a very immature boss.
Chalking up the numerous allegations to her being a prankster is a misrepresentation of the situation. Ellen tried to shirk responsibility by saying, “It looked like I was the boss…but I don’t think that meant that I should be in charge,” but the reality is that she was the boss—whether or not she felt that she should have those responsibilities.
“I wouldn’t be framed this way if I were a man”
Ellen also brought up the reality of gender dynamics in leadership roles. She shared that she was raised to be a people pleaser, but over time she grew confidence and authority. “We all have these unwritten rules, based on gender, of acceptable behavior, of who we’re allowed to be and how we’re allowed to act. And if we don’t follow these rules,” Ellen added, “it makes people uncomfortable. And when people get uncomfortable, there are consequences.”
It’s true that women are taken less seriously than men when it comes to leadership, but Ellen is conflating that very real issue with the consequences of her own actions. Women do have to jump through more hoops in the workforce, but that’s not what’s happening here.
“I stopped caring”
The special ends with a monologue about how being a public figure opens doors for constant scrutiny. Ellen shared that “the thought of anyone thinking that I’m mean was devastating to me, and it consumed me for a long time.” However, Ellen realized that it was bad for her mental health and decided that “after a lifetime of caring, I just can’t anymore. So I don’t.”
Again, what Ellen’s saying isn’t wrong at face value…it’s good to prioritize your mental health and oftentimes focusing all your energy on other people’s opinions isn’t healthy. But by focusing on how things impacted her, Ellen is disregarding the effect she’s had on other people. Ellen didn’t take a media hiatus simply because people were baselessly talking badly about her. She made some mistakes, and she should have owned up to them, instead of centering her own feelings and desires. After all, it’s not the Ellen show.
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