Ellen DeGeneres believes last year's toxic workplace scandal on her show felt "orchestrated".
In her first interview since announcing the end of her eponymous talk show, the 63-year-old media mogul revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that she would be wrapping up her show in 2022.
Considering the media storm DeGeneres had been at the center of less than a year ago, it has led many to believe that the rumors of a toxic work environment are what prompted her to cancel her long-running show.
Ellen DeGeneres says the toxic workplace allegations felt "orchestrated":However, for the TV icon, the scandal felt "too orchestrated". In an interview with Today's Savannah Guthrie, DeGeneres spoke in detail about the allegations. She told Guthrie:
"I really didn’t understand it. I still don’t understand it. It was too orchestrated. It was too coordinated. People get picked on, but for four months straight for me.
"And then for me to read in the press about a toxic work environment, when all I’ve ever heard from every guest that comes on the show is what a happy atmosphere this is and what a happy place this is."
When asked whether the allegations were the reason she opted out of the NBC talk show, she responded: "If it was why I was quitting, I would have not come back this year. I really did think about not coming back because…it was devastating."
She went on: "I am a kind person. I am a person who likes to make people happy. I just kept saying to [wife] Portia [de Rossi], 'If I was a fan of somebody and even if I loved them, I would think there must be some truth to it because it’s not stopping'."
The comic then recalled the moment she read about the toxic workplace claims and insists she had never seen anything that would indicate they were true.
She added: "I don't know how I could have known when there are 255 employees here and there are a lot of different buildings unless I literally stay here until the last person goes home at night."
Ellen DeGeneres explains her reason for ending the show in today's monologue:DeGeneres added: "It is my name on the show, so clearly it affects me and I have to be the one to stand up and say, ‘This can’t be tolerated.’ But I do wish somebody would have come to me and said, 'Hey, something's going on that you should know about'."
Per Variety, some employees accused DeGeneres of enabling a toxic environment behind the scenes, as they claimed the workplace perpetuated racial insensitivity, sexual misconduct, and intimidation.
In September 2020, DeGeneres publically addressed the accumulating allegations on her talk show in its season 18 premiere.
During the monologue, she apologized to her co-workers for incidents that "never should have happened".
Watch last year's emotional opening monologue below:The Ellen DeGeneres Show debuted on September 8, 2003, and its final episode will air sometime in 2022.
