Mean girl moments.
Abusive behavior.
Diva-level demands.
Abrupt cross-country moves for the entire company.
Here's what these TV hosts are really like behind the scenes.
"We all have a story to tell.
So let's talk about it."
"Tamron Hall" was a runaway hit — renewed for Seasons 4 and 5 in November 2021.
But as Hall's star was rising, buzz began to circulate about drama behind the scenes.
According to The Daily Mail in June 2020, the show fired over 20 employees during the
pandemic, with a source alleging,
"What really sucks is Tamron is earning millions of dollars a year, yet these team members
aren't.
Why couldn't she take a pay cut to keep everyone employed during this really difficult time?"
But Hall quickly responded on Instagram, explaining,
"That story that I did not pay 20 people and fired them and left them hanging is a lie."
She added,
"Like any other show, like any other product, people make changes and we did — after the
season had wrapped.
Not during, not while.
So this notion that I ran off securing bags, it is not true."
But the outlet also noted the show's reported toxic culture after a third executive producer,
Candi Carter, quit.
A source claimed that Carter and Hall frequently clashed, adding,
"When you work with Tamron, it's her way or the highway."
"You name it, I regret it."
Barbara Walters is a TV legend.
And as creator of the hit daytime series, "The View," she was assumed to be someone
who empowers other women.
But over the years, a different story has come to light.
"Let's just face it.
That was hell."
Jenny McCarthy joined the show in 2013, but was unprepared for what came next.
In the book "Ladies Who Punch," McCarthy detailed several explosive encounters with Walters,
recalling,
"When I'd hear the shuffle of her feet, I knew that Barbara was after me.
It would get faster.
Oh my God — she's coming!
Based on the speed of the shuffle, I would hide or get on the phone."
TV personality Ross Mathews also had his own run-in with the icon.
After being invited onto the show — by Walters — to guest co-host, she claimed to have
no idea who he was.
In his book "Name Drop," Mathews recalled that when he asked Walters for some last-minute
pre-show advice, she replied,
"I'd like to tell you to go out there and be yourself but I hope you won't."
Steve Harvey has always been well-liked and charismatic on air.
But in 2017, fans were shocked when a harsh staff memo was leaked to the press.
In the letter, Harvey demanded:
"Do not come to my dressing room unless invited.
Do not open my dressing room door.
IF YOU OPEN MY DOOR, EXPECT TO BE REMOVED.
My security team will stop everyone from standing at my door who have the intent to see or speak
to me."
"You will be shot.
I repeat: You will be shot."
After being painted as a diva and scandalizing fans, Harvey was forced to explain himself.
As he told Entertainment Tonight,
"I probably should've handled [the memo] a little bit differently.
I've always had a policy where, you know, you can come and talk to me — so many people
are great around here, but some of them just started taking advantage of it."
Sources told Variety that the missive was leaked by a former staffer who was let go
when Harvey moved the show to Los Angeles.
She can work a camera like she works the runway.
But Tyra Banks crafted two hit TV series as well; "America's Next Top Model" and "The
Tyra Show."
Her talk show lasted for five seasons and even won two Daytime Emmys.
And when she announced its final season, viewers weren't the only ones who were shocked — her
staff was, too.
But apparently, Banks had pulled similar moves before.
A source alleged to the New York Daily News,
"When the show moved from L.A. to New York, several staffers weren't even directly told
about the change — they heard through the grapevine that it was going to move locations.
Even so, a lot of those people gave up their lives on the West Coast so they could continue
working for the show.
Now they're out of luck."
"Beg me to smize…that's all you get."
The outlet also noted that many staffers found Banks supremely difficult to work with — and
employee turnover was high.
An insider claimed,
"She ... could be extremely brutal.
She really is a diva."
"It's showtime.
Let's do this…Aaah!
Aww!
All good."
British comedian James Corden made a name for himself when he took over "The Late Late
Show" in 2015.
And he's since gone viral with his "Carpool Karaoke" and "Crosswalk Musical" segments.
But while he may seem like everyone's buddy, on camera, the veil was ripped to shreds when
a Reddit AMA went haywire.
Instead of fans asking softball questions, the thread was flooded with people detailing
rude encounters they had with the host.
There were stories about him allegedly being rude to restaurant staff, being mean to his
wife, and throwing tantrums backstage at the show.
Corden and his staff answered just three questions before quickly signing off.
Then, in April 2019, he faced backlash after a Twitter user claimed Corden showed up to
a union meeting for TV writers, and advocated to pay them less, according to Mic.
After the tweet went viral, Corden quickly refuted the claim, tweeting,
"I love every writer on my show and all I ever wanted from that meeting was to explore
whether talented people could get a better opportunity."
Rosie O'Donnell first took over TV screens in 1996, headlining her own show before moving
on to "The View."
But while she was familiar to fans, she was known for a completely different reason behind
the scenes.
In 2015, outlets reported on a heated argument between O'Donnell and a "View" producer, in
which O'Donnell had to be physically restrained.
A source alleged to The Daily Mail,
"Anyone who challenges Rosie, or says no to her and doesn't let her be the empress, becomes
a target.
She wanted to be treated like an executive producer, without having the title."
Staff members would reportedly refer to her as "The Beast" because of her bully behavior.
And when senior producer Jennifer Shepard-Brookman sued O'Donnell for slander, sources told the
Hollywood Reporter just how, quote, "extremely nasty" she could be.
"It's a huge, kind of strange thing to be on a show like that and have all that attention
on you."
Having hosted "Late Night" and then "The Late Show" for over 33 years, David Letterman had
earned his iconic status.
But there was plenty of controversy before he officially retired in 2015.
Six years earlier, Letterman revealed on-air that he had received a package with a letter
and described it as blackmail, adding,
"It says that, 'I know that you do some terrible, terrible things.
And I can prove that you do these terrible things.'
And sure enough, contained in the package was stuff to prove that I do terrible things."
He then confessed to an affair with his personal assistant.
And he later apologized to his wife, Regina, on the show.
"I have had sex with women who work for me on this show."
But it didn't end there.
Former show writer Nell Scovell, penned a piece for Vanity Fair describing the work
environment as hostile and toxic — and accusing Letterman of "sexual favoritism."
In 2019, Letterman apologized to Scovell and other female staffers, according to The Hollywood
Reporter.
Jimmy Fallon is one of the happiest faces in late night.
But after more than a decade spent working grueling shooting schedules, cracks were starting
to show.
Soon there were reports of his excessive partying and drinking, all of which he has denied.
"Are we done?
This day is so weird…it's freakin' me out."
But in 2014, things got even buzzier when former SNL cast member Horatio Sanz alleged
that he and Fallon had both used alcohol to cope with the stress.
He told Vulture,
"We were super-functioning alcoholics, definitely.
They say that kind of goes hand in hand with 'SNL,' some kind of substance-abuse issues,
because it's so stressful, you easily find yourself blowing off steam a lot."
"Oh my God.
Look at your legs—" "I'm gettin' air."
In 2015, NBC was alerted to Fallon's reported partying after back-to-back random injuries
and a late night bar brawl.
A source alleged to the New York Post,
"There is so much money at stake, the pressure is enormous.
[Besides doing the show daily], they're looking for the next viral thing to hit.
He has no outlet."
Fallon finally addressed the rumors himself, telling the The New York Times in 2017,
"I could never do a day-to-day job if I was drinking every night.
That's just kicking you when you're down."
For 19 seasons of her talk show, Ellen DeGeneres urged viewers to always be kind to one another.
But in 2020, DeGeneres faced a reckoning that many people were waiting for.
It all started in March 2020, when comedian Kevin T. Porter tweeted to his followers:
"Respond to this with the most insane stories you've heard about Ellen being mean."
Stories from former employees, guests, and fans poured in.
Comedian Benjamin Siemon replied,
"A new staff member was told 'every day she picks someone different to really hate.
It's not your fault, just suck it up for the day and she'll be mean to someone else the
next day.'
They didn't believe it but it ended up being entirely true."
Four months later, Buzzfeed News published tales of former employees who detailed the
toxic culture that drove many staffers to quit.
As former series producer Hedda Muskat told Inside Edition,
"She was a miserable person to work for, she brought a lot of stress and anxiety to the
workplace."
Outside of alleged racism, unequal pay, and retaliation for taking personal days, one
employee confirmed that they were instructed not to speak to DeGeneres if they saw her
on set.
Another former staff member described the hypocrisy as "Be kind to the world, not your
employees."
Soon after, Entertainment Weekly noted that the show was under investigation by WarnerMedia.
And in March 2021, DeGeneres announced the final season of her show.
"If I never do another thing in my life, this has been the thing I'm most proud of."
"The Talk" hit the air in 2010 and quickly became a sensation.
But, despite being well-received, drama was brewing behind the scenes.
And co-host Sharon Osbourne was reportedly at the center of it.
In March 2021, viewers were shocked when a conversation about race between Osbourne and
co-host Sheryl Underwood quickly got heated.
When Underwood tried to explain her stance, Osbourne lashed out at her and began crying.
And some viewers considered her actions combative and insensitive.
"There's so many, um…stories."
As the backlash intensified, claims from former co-hosts Leah Remini and Holly Robinson Pete
resurfaced.
Both of them alleged that Osbourne was the culprit behind their firings back in 2011.
Pete tweeted:
"I'm old enough to remember when Sharon complained that I was too 'ghetto' for 'The Talk' ... then
I was gone."
Remini shared the same claim in 2012, tweeting:
"Sharon thought me and Holly were 'Ghetto,' (her words) we were not funny, awkward and
didn't know ourselves.
[…] Sharon said she asked [for] us to be fired."
"Publicists tell you, 'Don't talk about this, don't talk about that,' and it's really quite
annoying."
Remini also alleged that Osbourne frequently used racist and homophobic language toward
her co-hosts, something Osbourne has denied.
Since the '90s, Jay Leno has been a titan of late night TV.
But while he deftly played up his witty, light-hearted side, it seems he didn't get to the top by
being nice.
According to Entertainment Weekly, he was allegedly brutally cut-throat in order to
beat the competition.
For his part, David Letterman has never been shy about his own feud with Leno — or Leno's
feud with Conan O'Brien.
As he once joked:
"[There are] two kinds of talk show hosts: Jay Leno, and those who have been victimized
by Jay Leno."
Leno's reputation took a hit after he entered into a feud with O'Brien over their late night
TV spots.
After Leno essentially robbed O'Brien of his time slot and forced him to leave the network,
O'Brien told The Hollywood Reporter in 2012,
"The odds are we will both leave this Earth without speaking to each other, which is fine.
There's really nothing to say."
But Leno still believes he has no reason to make amends.
As he told Andy Cohen in 2019,
"I can't think of anything I'd do different."
Matt Lauer's firing from "The Today Show" was a culmination of multiple stunning allegations
about the anchor.
While he was once a respected journalist, stories began to leak that painted him in
a different light.
According to The Atlantic, he was allegedly an egotistical jerk who often used his power
on the show to bully co-anchors like Ann Curry and have them kicked off the show.
"I am not surprised by the allegations."
In 2016, Page Six reported on an alleged affair between Lauer and co-anchor Natalie Morales.
Both stars denied the allegations and Morales quietly left the show.
But rumors of Lauer being unfaithful didn't stop.
In 2017, his shocking firing came after multiple allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior
became public.
In 2020, journalist Ronan Farrow's book, "Catch and Kill," alleged that Lauer sexually assaulted
his NBC colleague, Brooke Nevils.
Lauer denied the allegations, telling Variety,
"In a new book, it is alleged that an extramarital, but consensual, sexual encounter I have previously
admitted having, was in fact an assault.
It is categorically false, ignores the facts, and defies common sense."
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available.
Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline
at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).