Perry, Hart remain fans of DeGeneres
Katy Perry cast a middle-of-the-night smile on Ellen DeGeneres, posting her take on the embattled talk show host for the whole world to see. The pop musician is not the only celebrity coming to DeGeneres’ defense. Actor Kevin Hart also chimed in Tuesday morning.
“I know I can’t speak for anyone else’s experience besides my own but I want to acknowledge that I have only ever had positive takeaways from my time with Ellen & on the @theellenshow,” Perry wrote in a couple of tweets in the wee hours Tuesday.
“I think we all have witnessed the light & continual fight for equality that she has brought to the world through her platform for decades,” Perry added. “Sending you love & a hug, friend.”
Hart joined in, calling it “crazy” to see what DeGeneres is going through. Hart is familiar with backlash, given the drama surrounding his old homophobic tweets that prompted him to back out of hosting the 2019 Oscars. He talked about his discussion with DeGeneres — stirring up yet more debate, this time aimed at both of them.
“I have known Ellen for years and I can honestly say that she’s one of the dopest people on the ... planet,” Hart wrote Tuesday in an Instagram post. “She has treated my family and my team with love and respect from day 1. The internet has become a crazy world of negativity ... we are falling in love with peoples down fall. It’s honestly sad.”
He added that his post was “not meant to disregard the feelings of others and their experiences ... It’s simply to show what my experiences have been with my friend. Love you for life, Ellen.”
Their support comes amid the #ReplaceEllen hashtag trending on Twitter this week, with users suggesting who should take DeGeneres’ place if she were to exit her show.
The “Be kind to one another” comedian and her talk show have been facing an onslaught of bad publicity as rumors of a toxic work environment surfaced publicly in a number of ways. They culminated in a July story, in which former and current employees reported experiencing racism and intimidation.
About 10 days after that report came out, show producers said they were looking into the allegations of a toxic workplace.