Ellen DeGeneres is back in the spotlight with fresh allegations about her behind-the-scenes behaviour on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The once-untouchable daytime host, who saw her empire crumble in 2022 amid accusations of a toxic workplace, is now being accused of more questionable actions.
One of the latest claims involves celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, who was allegedly banned from the show for nearly eight seasons after a blunt critique of DeGeneres during a food demo.
According to a former staff member who worked on the show for over ten years, Ramsay didn’t hold back when tasting some meat presented by DeGeneres. “As soon as he bit in, he was like, ‘This is rubbish. This is disgusting,’” the staffer told The Daily Mail. DeGeneres reportedly didn’t take well to the comment and Ramsay was never invited back to the show for almost eight years.
But that’s not the only troubling detail to emerge. The staffer also claimed that DeGeneres had a particular issue with male employees, saying she “burned through nine stage managers in one season,” an unusually high turnover. “We had a feeling she really didn’t like guys,” they added.
There were also other alleged instances of DeGeneres firing staff over minor infractions, including a warm-up comedian dismissed for joking about her riding a unicycle, and a production assistant who was let go after his golf cart briefly blocked her car on the Warner Bros. lot.
“She could be dancing and laughing on camera, then during the break she’d be glaring into the crew area like a queen deciding who to execute,” the staffer said.
These new allegations add to a growing list of troubling claims that began circulating in 2020. That year, BuzzFeed News published an exposé with accounts from one current and ten former staffers who painted The Ellen DeGeneres Show as a toxic and oppressive work environment. All the employees spoke anonymously, fearing retaliation from DeGeneres’ powerful team.
One former worker described the “be kind” mantra that DeGeneres often promoted as “bullsh-t” and a show for the cameras. “I know they give money to people and help them out, but it’s for show,” the employee said.
Other accounts revealed staffers being fired after taking medical or bereavement leave and allegations that some employees were instructed to avoid speaking to DeGeneres when they saw her around the office. One worker even quit after being subjected to repeated racist comments.
As the allegations spread across social media, the backlash grew, eventually leading to the firing of three executive producers by the end of 2020. By 2022, after nearly two decades on the air, NBC officially cancelled the show.
In response to the initial BuzzFeed News report, executive producers Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly, and Andy Lassner took responsibility for the environment, acknowledging the issues and vowing to do better. “We strive to create an open, safe, and inclusive work environment,” they said in a joint statement. “But we realise, as many in the world are learning, that we need to do better, are committed to do better, and we will do better.”
DeGeneres, who once made $77 million annually from the show, was reportedly shocked by the allegations, later telling The Hollywood Reporter that the accusations were “eye-opening.” “I think that I learned a lot, and there were some things that came up that I was shocked and surprised by. It was eye-opening,” she said. “But I just trust that that had to happen.”
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