Ellen Degeneres says she “got kicked out of showbusiness” in new Netflix special

DeGeneres was referencing the bullying scandal that hit her talk show, which was brought to an end after 19 years not long after

Ellen DeGeneres has claimed she “got kicked out of showbusiness” in her new Netflix stand-up special.

The special, For Your Approval, will hit the streamer on September 24 and marks DeGeneres’ return to stand-up as her first comedy performance in six years. It is the second instalment of a two-part deal with Netflix, the first being 2018’s Relatable.

Upon the special’s announcement, DeGeneres said that it would not only be her last comedy special, but also her last outing in the showbiz world full stop.

“The ‘Be Kind’ girl wasn’t kind, that was the headline,” she says in the trailer. “Here’s the problem, I’m a comedian who got a talk show and I ended the show every day by saying, ‘Be kind to one another.’ Had I ended the show by saying, ‘Go fuck yourselves,’ people would have been pleasantly surprised to find out I’m kind.”

The special also sees her address bullying allegations made against her in a Buzzfeed News 2022 report, which caused her to abruptly end her talk show after 19 years on air. Employees accused executives of fostering a “toxic workplace” environment, alleging incidents of sexual misconduct, racism and bullying.

Elsewhere in the trailer, DeGeneres says she went into the entertainment to heal her childhood wounds. “I thought, if I could make people happy, they’ll like me. And if they like me, I’ll feel good about myself,” she says. “And all I can say about that is, thank God for the money.”

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A synopsis of For Your Approval reads: “Ellen gets personal and reveals what she’s been doing since being ‘kicked out of show business.’ From the mundane world of raising chickens and parallel parking to the harsh reality of becoming a brand name celebrity, she goes deep into her stand-up roots and brings the laughs through life’s most real and absurd realities.”

The special was filmed on her recent tour, Ellen’s Last Stand… Up. In July, she cancelled four dates on the tour in Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle and Chicago with no explanation.