Ellen DeGeneres Says She’s “Not Mean,” Leaving Showbiz After Netflix Special

Ellen DeGeneres is back—but not for long, she says. The once beloved, now embattled comedian is currently on Ellen’s Last Stand…Up tour and has told fans that isn’t just a title: Once she tapes her Netflix special, DeGeneres plans to leave showbiz for good.

DeGeneres said as much during a Q&A with the audience after a recent show at the Luther Burbank Center for Arts in Santa Rosa, California. One audience member asked if DeGeneres was considering a grander return after her tour, potentially returning to movies or Broadway. DeGeneres answered succinctly: “Um, no,” she said. “This is the last time you’re going to see me. After my Netflix special, I’m done.”

When another fan asked if she would consider returning to voice work, reprising her role as Dory in a Finding Nemo or Finding Dory sequel, she also shot that down. “No. I’m going bye-bye, remember?” DeGeneres said.

But before that, DeGeneres wants to set the record straight. At previous stops on the tour, she referred to herself as “the most hated woman in America” and made jokes about her exile from Hollywood, saying that she had been “kicked out of show business.” She was referring to how the public’s perception of her soured after a bombshell 2020 BuzzFeed report in which 10 former and one then current staffer at The Ellen DeGeneres Show accused the comedian of fostering a toxic workplace environment. The story included allegations of racism and intimidation. At the time, DeGeneres apologized to her staff and said she was committed to ensuring the issues didn’t reoccur.

DeGeneres also delivered an on-air apology, but it was too little too late. The allegations led to a steep decline in viewers, multiple Ellen senior staff members being dismissed, and ultimately hastened the end of DeGeneres’s long-running, Emmy-winning daytime show after 19 seasons.

According to Variety, DeGeneres said at the Santa Rosa show that she “can be demanding and impatient and tough.”

“I am a strong woman,” she continued. “I am many things, but I am not mean.”

DeGeneres recently canceled four dates of her comedy tour in Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle and Dallas without any explanation. Ellen’s Last Stand…Up tour is scheduled to continue through August 17. Her Netflix stand-up special is set to be taped during the tour and air in late 2024.

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