Ellen DeGeneres has always been a polarizing figure. There are those who love her, those
who hate her, and those who accuse her of fostering a toxic work culture.
A few weeks ago, Warner Brothers launched an investigation into complaints by employees
of The Ellen DeGeneres Show that speak of alleged racism and intimidation behind the
scenes from senior-level producers and writers, plus poor communication and treatment of staff
during the coronavirus shutdown.
There have been some celebrities speaking up in Ellen's defense, fellow talk show host
Jay Leno, for one, tweeted of his 40-year friendship, saying,
"The Ellen I know has raised over $125 million dollars for charity and has always been a
kind and decent person. I fully support her."
While pop star Katy Perry tweeted,
"I have only ever had positive takeaways from my time with Ellen & on [The Ellen Degeneres
Show]."
Numerous Twitter users commented that Ellen most likely does apply a double standard to
her A-List guests and treats them far better than the "little people" behind the scenes,
although she has her celebrity detractors, as well. In fact, Ellen's former DJ, Tony
Okungbawa, recently spoke out on Instagram confirming some of the allegations that have
been made. He wrote,
"I have been getting calls asking me about the Ellen Degeneres Show and I would like
to address the time I spent there. I was on air talent from 2003-2006 and from 2007-2013.
While I am grateful for the opportunity it afforded me, I did experience and feel the
toxicity of the environment and I stand with my former colleagues in their quest to create
a healthier and more inclusive workplace as the show moves forward."
However, her most recent DJ, Stephen "tWitch" Boss, has quite a different story to tell.
In a recent interview with E! News, tWitch said he feels, quote, "blessed…on a daily
basis," while doing the show, explaining,
"You know, there hasn't been too many gigs where you feel it every day and build a genuine
love from front to back. And the audience, being so happy to be there and ready to dance
and ready to laugh and have a good time."
In another recent interview with Us Weekly, the former So You Think You Can Dance runner-up
said,
"We can't speak too much legally about it, but I'll say this, there's been love. Obviously
there's some things to address, but from my standpoint and from countless others, there's
been love. I'll just leave it at that until there's a time where we can address more publicly.
There's been love and there will continue to be love."
And tWitch had nothing but love for the Ellen show experience in a February 2019 Access
interview:
"It's such a blast. It's somewhere I can go literally every day and know we're gonna be
dancing, we're gonna be laughing and having a good time."
So whose version of the drama are we supposed to believe? A tale of two DJs, each offering
a very different perspective. Maybe the investigation will uncover the real truth, or it may just
lead to further confusion. At this point, no one really knows how things will pan out.
Something else that's up in the air at this point is the future of The Ellen DeGeneres
Show. While neither NBC nor DeGeneres have announced the show's cancellation, Film Daily
speculates that it will ultimately come down whether ad revenues decline as the ongoing
scandals unfold. For DeGeneres' part, she spoke out on the scandal in a statement at
the end of July, saying, in part,
"On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres
Show would be a place of happiness, no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone
would be treated with respect. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to
learn that this has not been the case...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."
A Warner Brothers spokesperson echoed DeGeneres' words in a statement, saying staffing changes
had already been identified, and that steps were being taken to, quote, "ensure a workplace
based on respect and inclusion."
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