This post was originally published on May 12 and has since been updated with new information.
Ellen DeGeneres, one of America’s best-known talk show hosts, said on Wednesday she will end her daytime show in 2022, saying that after 19 years it was time to do something different.
DeGeneres told her virtual audience that the show had been “the greatest experience of my life” and thanked her fans for watching. But she said she needed “to take a break from talking.”
“My instinct told me it’s time. As a comedian, I’ve always understood the importance of timing,” she said. “Recently, I had a dream that a bird, a beautiful bird with bright red feathers, came to my window and whispered, ‘You can still do stuff on Netflix.’ And that was the sign I was looking for,” she quipped.
“The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” produced by AT&T Inc’s Warner Bros and syndicated to TV stations, has won more than 60 Emmy awards.
But audiences have fallen in the past six months following an internal inquiry into media reports of a toxic work environment behind the scenes. Three top producers exited the production in 2020, and DeGeneres apologized, promising “a new chapter.”
She told The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday that public attacks during that time “destroyed me” but did not influence her decision to end the show. That choice, she said, was made when she extended her contract for three years in 2019.
(Reporting by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Leslie Adler)
Original post:
Ellen DeGeneres will end her Emmy-winning daytime talk show next year after its upcoming 19th season, the comedian said in an interview published in The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday.
According to the article, DeGeneres, 63, will discuss the decision on Thursday’s show with guest Oprah Winfrey. “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,” DeGeneres said in the interview.
“The Ellen DeGeneres Show” debuted in 2003 and has won more than 60 Emmy awards. It is produced by AT&T Inc’s Warner Bros and syndicated to TV stations. In April, DeGeneres and her production team celebrated their 3,000th show.
DeGeneres started her career in stand-up comedy in her New Orleans hometown before moving to television, where she starred in comedy “Ellen” in the mid-1990s.
In 1997, both she and her TV character came out as a lesbian long before gay people were accepted in mainstream America. “Ellen” was canceled a year later, but DeGeneres returned to television in 2003 with her daytime show.
An advocate for animals, gay rights and anti-bullying campaigns, DeGeneres became known for promoting kindness and compassion on her light-hearted show.
But last year, three top producers exited the production and DeGeneres apologized after reports of a toxic work environment, promising “a new chapter.”
She told The Hollywood Reporter that public attacks during that time “destroyed me” but did not influence her decision to end the show. That choice was made when she extended her contract for three more years following season 16, she said.
Reactions to the announcement have been mixed, with some fans sad to see the show end while others, following the controversy, feel that the time has come.
DeGeneres said her future plans are uncertain. She said she is open to movie roles and wants to be more involved in environmental conservation efforts. In addition to her talk show, the comedian voiced the forgetful Pacific blue tang fish in the animated movies “Finding Nemo” and “Finding Dory,” and twice hosted the annual Oscars ceremony.
(Reporting by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Mark Heinrich)
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