WASHINGTON — As the American talk show “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” is heading towards its 19th and final season, which will premiere on Sept. 13, 2021, the guest list for this last season has finally been revealed.
The series will kick off its final premiere where it started: with its first-ever guest, Jennifer Aniston. It will be the “Friends” alum’s 23rd time on the show, proving that she’ll always be there for long-time host Ellen DeGeneres.
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, who will appear on the show for the 20th time, is another frequent guest set to return for season 19.
The audience can also expect a sit-down with Kim Kardashian, her first interview since her long-running docuseries “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” concluded.
Tiffany Haddish, Imagine Dragons, Melissa McCarthy, Sean’ Diddy’ Combs, Julianne Moore, and Melissa Etheridge are the guests slated for the new season. Ever since DeGeneres announced in May 2021 that season 19 would be the show’s last one, fans have been preparing themselves for this fall, waiting for its final season.
“When you’re a creative person, you constantly need to be challenged — and as great as this show is, and as fun, as it is, it’s just not a challenge anymore,” said DeGeneres.
Though fans didn’t anticipate the show’s end, the in-house DJ, Stephen “tWitch” Boss, revealed that he saw the final season coming.
“(Ellen) had announced it three years ago that she signed on for three more years,” he said in June 2021
“So I felt that she was going to stay true to that. It actually didn’t come as a surprise because she had already said it, you know?” said Boss.
This decision came amid an internal investigation into the show regarding reports of workplace misconduct that resulted in the ousting of three long-time producers — Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman, and Jonathan Norman. Though DeGeneres addressed the situation with her staff in July 2020, she was not accused of any wrongdoing.
“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,” she said in a letter to her employees.
DeGeneres added that she was “committed to ensuring this does not happen again.”
Keeping up her promise, which she made in May 2021, to make every day of season 19 “a celebration.”
With the show’s last season, DeGeneres and her team have planned to thank the fans who’ve shown their love and support over these almost 20 years.
(With inputs from ANI)
Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Nikita Nikhil
