All The Celebrities Who've Come To Ellen DeGeneres' Defense Of Late
Ellen’s in a tight spot at the moment. Last week, WarnerMedia investigated staff allegations that The Ellen DeGeneres Show is a hotbed of discrimination and general abusiveness. Ellen herself has long been accused of being a shitty person – her former bodyguard, for example, reckons she’s “demeaning in the way that she treats people other than those who are in her circle”. This video of Ellen getting frustrated at a translator doesn't bode well for her ‘be kind’ schtick either.
Amid the bad press, a bunch of celebrities have come out of the woodwork to make it clear that Ellen was always super nice to them… let’s have a look-see, shall we?
1. Katy Perry
The singer took to Twitter to say she has “only ever had positive takeaways from her time with Ellen”. “I think we all have witnessed the light and continual fight for equality that she has brought to the world through her platform for decades”. Katy signed off her tweet sending her friend “love and a hug”.
2. Kevin Hart
Actor and comedian Kevin Hart also chimed in with a supportive message to his mate mid-last week. “I have known Ellen for years and I can honestly say that she’s one of the dopest people on the fucking planet. She has treated my family and my team with love and respect from day 1”, the post read. “The internet has become a crazy world of negativity”, he added.
Kevin stressed his post was “not meant to disregard the feelings of others experiences” but to show his personal experience with Ellen. “Love you for life Ellen,” he gushed.
3. Ashton Kutcher
Actor Ashton Kutcher also weighed in on the controversy, insisting that Ellen only ever treated him with “respect and kindness”. “She never pandered to celebrity which I always saw as a refreshing honesty,” he added.
I can't tell if we're being Punk'd or not. Are we being Punk'd?
4. Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin and partner Hilaria also threw their support behind the talk show host, tweeting their thoughts from the Hilaria and Alec Baldwin Foundation Twitter account. “In the entertainment business, sometimes people can go too far in pursuit of a creative or commercial goal. Or people who work for you may do so,” the tweet began. Ohhh I see, staff were bullied, discriminated against and sexually harassed because creativity. Totally.
"Having stated that, @TheEllenShow has always been kind to me”, the tweet continued. "So...there's that." Insightful.
5. Diane Keaton
Actress Diane Keaton's contribution came in the form of a rather confronting all-caps situation. “I ALWAYS ENJOYED MY VISITS TO THE ELLEN SHOW,” she wrote on Instagram.
"I’VE SEEN HOW THE AUDIENCE EXUDES HAPPINESS AND GRATITUDE. SHE GIVES BACK TO SO MANY INCLUDING ME”.
Alright Keaton, no need to shout. My god.
By the way, Diane Keaton defended noted creep Woody Allen over abuse allegations a couple of years ago.... so yeah, maybe sit this one out, ma'am.
6. Howard Stern
This one's a bit of a wild card entry. Television and radio presenter Howard Stern didn’t so much defend Ellen as dole out PR advice; suggesting that Ellen needed an image change.
“You know what I’d do if I was Ellen? I would change my whole image. I’d go on the air and be a son of a bitch,” Stern said on Monday as reported by PageSix.
Alright, cheers for that Howard.
So there you have it: the celebrities who came running to Ellen’s defense. And while most of them acknowledged they could only speak for their own experiences, they’re really not doing any favours to the staff who appear to have endured an extremely harmful workplace situation, some for years.
It’s also worth pointing out that none of these testimonies does anything to discredit the allegations made against Ellen or her show – they centre around the mistreatment of staff. Yes, she’s nice to the rich and powerful, that doesn't mean she's treating her staff the same way.
As Spencer Kornhaber writes in The Atlantic, "famous people want the world to know Ellen DeGeneres is nice to famous people”. But in doing so, they've completely missed the point.
Main Image Credit: Licensed By Getty
