Ellen DeGeneres returns to standup, addresses being canceled

Ellen DeGeneres kicked off her Ellen’s Last Stand … Up Tour on Wednesday, April 24, and didn’t shy away from tackling the controversy surrounding her talk show, and the accusations of poor working conditions that she jokes got her “kicked out of show business.”

“There’s no mean people in show business,” she noted, per Rolling Stone. “… I became this one-dimensional character who gave stuff away and danced up steps. Do you know how hard it is to dance up steps? Would a mean person dance up steps? Had I ended my show by saying, ‘Go f*** yourself,’ people would’ve been pleasantly surprised.”

DeGeneres’ daytime talk show ended its 19-year run in 2022, amid accusations of racism, sexual misconduct and intimidation on the set of the show.

“For those of you keeping score, this is the second time I’ve been kicked out of show business,” DeGeneres told her audience, referring to her 1990s sitcom Ellen, which was canceled after she publicly came out as gay.

“Eventually they’re going to kick me out for a third time because I’m mean, old and gay,” DeGeneres quipped.

“It’s been such a toll on my ego and my self-esteem. There’s such extremes in this business, people either love you and idolize you or they hate you, and those people somehow are louder.”

“I used to say that I didn’t care what other people thought of me and I realized … I said that at the height of my popularity,” she shared. “It is such a waste of time to worry about what other people think … Right now I’m hoping you’re thinking, ‘This is marvelous, I’m so happy to be here.’ But you could be thinking, ‘Let’s see how this goes.’”

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