‘Oh yeah, I got kicked out of show business’: Ellen DeGeneres’ final comedy special addresses ‘the be kind girl’ not being kind

For 19 seasons, comedian Ellen Degeneres was a staple in living rooms across the country and was seen as one of the funniest and most down-to-earth talk show hosts with her daytime series, The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Over the last several years, however, her reputation tanked in the spotlight due to a string of controversial behaviors.

At one point, surfing through the channels during the late television window was a breeze, because most television fanatics simply had one goal in mind — turn on Degeneres’ talk show, marvel at an array of celebrities, and have a few satisfying laughs while doing so. But the 66-year-old comedian’s reputation began to plummet after allegations accused her on-screen persona of being completely opposite of her real-life self.

In the blink of an eye, “the be-kind girl” was suddenly one of the “meanest” celebrities within the massive Hollywood bubble. Furthermore, the engaging host who memorably signed off each broadcast of her talk show encouraging viewers to “be kind to one other” was allegedly mistreating staff and crew members behind the scenes and shockingly etching herself as a secretive workplace bully.

Along with the alleged mistreatment of staff and others, DeGeneres received equal criticism during the COVID-19 pandemic when she complained about having to stay at home during the global crisis, leading a large majority online to disagree with her using her platform to complain as a rich, globally successful celebrity while regular civilians and essential workers were struggling with finances and watching loved ones pass.

Flash forward to now, and DeGeneres is evidently using those once-damaging allegations as comedic fuel for her upcoming Netflix standup special, For Your Approval. Set to premiere on the streaming platform on Sept. 24, DeGeneres has already stated that this will be the final comedy special of her career — it’s clear she’s trying to convince the world that she isn’t actually mean in the process, all while addressing how she was “kicked out of show business.”

Unfortunately for Ellen, the damage appears to have already been done, especially when you consider the magnitude of backlash that was received the minute Netflix officially promoted the standup special. Nevertheless, that certainly hasn’t stopped her from joking about making money in the biz, although she claims in the upcoming special that she only got into the comedic industry to make others laugh.

So as she attempts to piece together bouts of controversy, DeGeneres has insisted that she’s simply trying to show the world that she is, in fact, a kind person. And, as one user on X interestingly put it, “all she had to do was admit she was being an assh*le on some days and could’ve been nicer.”