At this point, The Ellen DeGeneres Show is still a major staple in the weekday lives of millions of people, including host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres herself. But the show's placement in the pop culture spotlight has drastically changed in recent months following a vast assortment of both formal and informal complaints made that call out DeGeneres and the talk show's producers for toxic workplace behavior, among other more damning allegations. Understandably, fans have wondered if this current backlash will affect her show's lifespan under its WarnerMedia banner.
Considering WarnerMedia is currently going through a pretty massive shake-up across the board, from the highest-level execs on down, it only makes sense to expect for those changes to trickle down. But for now, the still-new WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar doesn't see any changes on the horizon with how the company will be handling The Ellen DeGeneres Show's future. Here's how Kilar put it in an interview with THR:
There’s nothing new there. Ellen’s doing what she does best right now. We’re fully supportive of her. Aside from what’s been shared publicly, there’s really nothing to comment on.
To be expected, WarnerMedia's big boss stated that the status quo is still intact for The Ellen DeGeneres Show, with no major announcements to bring up. And unless the company's internal investigation into workplace complaints unearths some kind of a smoking-gun scenario, the talk show will likely continue on largely unencumbered. It's of course possible that someone involved with the show might get laid off for one reason or another in the coming months, but it would presumably take a massive bombshell to derail the entire shebang.
One pretty major factor that has helped keep some of the WarnerMedia and Ellen show execs out of the brightest spotlights is the series is currently in summer hiatus mode ahead of Season 18. The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been airing repeats and best-of compilation episodes since July, which is when the complaints about the show's toxic culture really started rolling in steadily, though that seal was broken months prior, when the show was still producing daily episodes.
It's worth noting that the show's ratings have taken a dip in recent weeks as Hollywood went into debate-mode over Ellen DeGeneres. The host has celebs like Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Hart in her corner, as well as obvious backers like her wife Portia de Rossi and her brother Vance. But obviously not everyone is on her side, and even former show star DJ Tony seemed to be aware of the alleged toxicity during his time on the show.
For what it's worth, Ellen DeGeneres did come out with an apologetic statement after accusations started flying, saying the below:
On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness — no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry. Anyone who knows me knows it’s the opposite of what I believe and what I hoped for our show.
The Ellen Degeneres Show airs in syndication, so be sure to check your local listings to see when and where it airs in your area. And to see what else is hitting the small screen in the near future, head to our Fall 2020 TV premiere schedule and plan out your primetime fixes.
