After 18 seasons, Ellen DeGeneres has announced that her 19th will be her last. In a shocking announcement, the legendary talk show host admitted that The Ellen DeGeneres Show is coming to an end.
Soon, gone will be the days of goofy jokes, touching stories, and seeing people’s dreams come true and lives get turnaround for the better. According to The Hollywood Reporter, this was a decision that was years in the making.
Ellen DeGeneres Announces the End of Her Beloved Show
“I was going to stop after season 16. That was going to be my last season and they wanted to sign for four more years and I said I’d sign for maybe for one. They were saying there was no way to sign for one. ‘We can’t do that with the affiliates and the stations need more of a commitment.’ So, we [settled] on three more years and I knew that would be my last. That’s been the plan all along. And everybody kept saying, even when I signed, ‘You know, that’s going to be 19, don’t you want to just go to 20? It’s a good number.’ So is 19.”
Reports suggest that the staff of the show was notified of the news on May 11 and that Ellen will open up more about why she is decided to end the show after the 19th season with fellow legendary talk show host, Oprah Winfrey.
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“When you’re a creative person, you constantly need to be challenged – and as great as this show is, and as fun as it is, it’s just not a challenge anymore,” DeGeneres told The Hollywood Reporter.
This news also comes on the heels of a difficult year for Ellen, who despite the pandemic, was slammed for her demeanor behind the camera and also for not being aware of how some of her staff was treated by executives of her show. All of which, Ellen has since apologized for.
As Mamas Uncut previously reported, allegation originally revealed by BuzzFeed suggested that she was facing criticism that her personality was sometimes different than it appeared on the show. The host addressed all of that and more during the opening monologue of her show on September 21.
“As you may have heard, this summer there were allegations of a toxic work environment at our show and then there was an investigation. I learned that things happened here that never should have happened. I take that very seriously and I want to say I am so sorry to the people who were affected. I know that I am in a position of privilege and power and I realize that with that comes responsibility. And I take responsibility for what happens at my show. This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show. I am Ellen DeGeneres. My name is there. My name is there. My name is on underwear.”
Following the investigation, Ellen said she and her team have sat down to have conversations about the show, the workplace, and what they hope the future will look like. “We have made the necessary changes. And today, we are starting a new chapter.”
Now, that new chapter will come to an end in 2022 for good. By the time the show ends, Ellen will have filmed more than 3,000 episodes of her show and conducted almost as man celebrity interviews, The Hollywood Reporter revealed.
In a statement made Warner Bros.’ Unscripted TV President Mike Darnell, he said, “although all good things must come to an end, you still have hope that truly great things never will,” before going on to call The Ellen Show “an absolute phenomenon” and “the premiere destination for both superstars and incredible heartfelt human-interest stories.”
“Ellen was and is an indelible piece of the television landscape, and it will be sorely missed.” And despite all of the reports that came to light over the last year, many will miss seeing Ellen on their television screens every weekday afternoon. Darnell has even reportedly attempted to talk Ellen into a few more seasons, but as the host told The Hollywood Reporter, she never waivered.
“When we did our 3,000th show, they showed that highlights montage, and everybody was emotional. We all hugged and everyone had tears in their eyes, and Mike Darnell was here going, “You really want to [end this]?” Look, it’s going to be really hard on the last day, but I also know it’s time.”
“I need something new to challenge me,” she added. What that something new is remains unclear, just like what this news means for Ellen’s other ventures like NBC’s Ellen’s Game of Games and her digital series like Momsplaining With Kirstin Bell.
And while Ellen knows there is more she can be doing, as for what that is, she admits she doesn’t even know the answer right now. So, for now, we will all just have to wait and find out.