Ellen DeGeneres addresses the ‘hurtful’ end of her talk show in new stand-up set

By Marianne Garvey, CNN

(CNN) — Ellen DeGeneres is reflecting on how her talk show came to an end.

The comedian began performing potential preview material from her “Ellen’s Last Stand…Up Tour” this week. The tour will be her first major project since “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” finished its run in 2022.

“Oh yeah, I got kicked out of show business,” DeGeneres quipped to the crowd at Largo at the Coronet Theater in West Hollywood, according to Rolling Stone.

DeGeneres hosted her daytime show for 19 seasons. In 2020, she apologized on air after staffers had alleged the production environment on set was toxic – a contrast to happy tone of the show and her public image.

“I became this one-dimensional character who gave stuff away and danced up steps,” DeGeneres joked in her set Wednesday. “Do you know how hard it is to dance up steps? Would a mean person dance up steps? Had I ended my show by saying, ‘Go f**k yourself,’ people would’ve been pleasantly surprised.”

DeGeneres also referenced how her sitcom “Ellen” was cancelled in 1998, not long after she publicly shared she is gay.

“For those of you keeping score, this is the second time I’ve been kicked out of show business,” she said. “Eventually they’re going to kick me out for a third time because I’m mean, old and gay.”

DeGeneres said it had all taken a toll on her self-esteem, adding “people either love you and idolize you or they hate you, and those people somehow are louder.”

“It was so hurtful. I couldn’t do anything to make myself understand that it wasn’t personal,” DeGeneres told the Largo audience in a conversation after her set. “I just thought, ‘Well this is not the way I wanted to end my career, but this is the way it’s ending.’ I just hated the way the show ended. I love that show so much and I just hated that the last time people would see me is that way.”

“Ellen’s Last Stand…Up Tour” will have multiple dates this spring and summer before later debuting on Netflix.

This story has been updated to include additional information

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