After several months of allegations of workplace toxicity and meanness on her part, Ellen DeGeneres finally began the latest season of her morning talk show with an apology for everything that has happened and has been revealed. But is the audience buying it?
Forbes certainly isn’t. In a column released by the publication, senior contributor Dani Di Placido labeled DeGeneres’s apology as “insincere,” saying it was the same public apology that every celebrity does.
Aside from that criticism, the column also pointed out that the opening spiel delivered by DeGeneres did not address the more “unpleasant details” of what happened in the show. The column also derided DeGeneres’s claim that she is a nice person.
As recounted by Reuters, the apology had the 62-year-old television host saying that the show will start with a “new chapter” after implementing changes meant to stop the toxic work environment that has plagued the show.
DeGeneres also sought to put to rest rumors that she was equally as mean-spirited as the work environment on her show. The host said that while she did spend part of her career as an actress “playing a straight woman,” it did not mean she was skilled enough to pretend to be nice for all the years the show has been on.
The apology comes after DeGeneres promised a couple of weeks ago that the new season of The Ellen DeGeneres Show would tackle the allegations hurled against it over the past few months.
As detailed in a Buzzfeed report, the allegations against the show and a number of its senior producers include incidents of sexual harassment, racism, and even the denial of leaves for mental health or to attend a funeral.
The Buzzfeed report triggered an investigation from WarnerMedia, which resulted in the removal of three senior producers as well as the introduction of new perks for the show’s staffers.
Aside from DeGeneres, the past few months have also seen other celebrities deal with allegations of their abusive behavior on and off the camera. These celebrities include film former showrunner Peter Lenkov, actress Lea Michele, and film director Joss Whedon.
Lenkov was called out by Lucas Till, the lead actor in one of the shows he used to run, MacGyver. Till said he was almost pushed to suicide by the bullying, verbal abuse, and body-shaming he suffered under Lenkov.
Lea Michele, on the other hand, was accused by former Glee co-star Samantha Ware of making the set of the hit show “a living hell.”
Meanwhile, Whedon’s behavior on the set of the Justice League film was called gross, abusive, and unprofessional by actor Ray Fisher, who starred as Cyborg in the film.