Ellen to call it quits after 19th season on the air
Ellen Degeneres is ending her long-running talk show.
The daytime host, who has seen a ratings hit after allegations of running a toxic workplace, has decided that the upcoming 19th season will be the last, ending in 2022. It coincides with the end of her contract.
“You may wonder why I’ve decided to end after 19 seasons. The truth is, I always trust my instincts. My instinct told me it’s time,” a tearful Degeneres said Wednesday during a taping for Thursday’s show.
“I promise you that we’re going to have a fantastic final season. It will be a season where I truly get to say, ‘Thank You. Thank you all.’ Every day will be a celebration,” she said.
She used humor to lighten the mood and the message. “In 1997, I knew it was time to come out on my sitcom and live my truth,” Degeneres said, recalling a vivid, inspiring dream in which a bird escaped its cage because it had to be free.
“Recently, I had a dream that a bird, beautiful bird with bright red feathers, came to my window and whispered, ‘You can still do stuff on Netflix,’” a deadpan Degeneres said, drawing laughs from the virtual studio audience.
“The Ellen Degeneres Show,” which started airing in 2003 and is distributed by Warner Bros., has a mix of dancing, games and giveaways along with A-list celebrities. But the host, who built her brand on the motto “Be Kind,” opened season 18 in September with a lengthy apology.
Three of the show’s producers exited over the summer amid allegations of a dysfunctional workplace that harbored misbehavior, including sexual misconduct and racially insensitive remarks.
While the allegations were “very hurtful to me,” they didn’t influence her decision to leave the show, Degeneres told The Hollywood Reporter. “I wouldn’t have come back this season” if they had, she said.
Nielsen data shows “The Ellen Degeneres Show” viewership dropped by 1.1 million people this season, from 2.6 million viewers to 1.5 million viewers.
Bennifer 2.0? Lopez and Affleck are together again
After weeks of rumors about surreptitious meetings in a white SUV, the news broke this week that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck — the once white-hot couple and glittering tabloid spectacle known as Bennifer — had rekindled their romance after 17 years with a weeklong vacation in Montana. There were even photos to prove it.
The report prompted giddy squeals of joy, the likes of which have not been heard since that time Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt said hi to each other on Zoom.