NOT KIND
ELLEN DeGeneres was once accused of being "aggressive" and "very cold" by former Bachelor star Corinne Olympios.
Corinne appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2017; and during the interview, Ellen regularly referenced the reality star's breasts and asked if she was crazy or drunk during filming.
11
Months later, during an appearance on Jackie and Claudia Oshry's podcast The Morning Toast, she admitted the experience was a negative one which left her feeling "so uncomfortable."
Corinne said: "I love Ellen so much — I thought it would be like talking to Dory, and I was really excited.
“And she made me so uncomfortable, unfortunately.
"I kept this in for so long, but to be honest she just made me a little uncomfortable.”
She added: "She’s very aggressive — she was very cold when I saw her before the show, which I don’t think I was supposed to, because everybody got very nervous when we bumped into each other and you could tell they were like, 'Oh, shit.'"
11
11
An internal investigation by the talk show's parent company WarnerMedia is allegedly taking place after employees came forward on social media about experiencing "racism, fear and intimidation” while working on the show.
According to Variety, Telepictures - which produces the daytime series - and Warner Bros. - which is in charge of distribution - sent an e-mail to staffers last week to say they’re working with a third-party firm.
Sources told the outlet in addition to the third party company, WarnerMedia’s employee relations group will also interview current and former workers about their experiences on set.
In early July, Ellen employees revealed bombshell accusations they suffered from "racism, fear and intimidation” on set.
11
11
One current and 10 former crew members from the hit daytime series spoke to BuzzfeedNews about the “toxic work environment” but remained anonymous due to fear of retribution.
“Is she always nice? No,” said a former staffer. “It irritates me that people think she’s all sweetness and light and she gets away with it.”
On Friday, Everybody Loves Raymond star Brad Garrett took to Twitter to claim that her "horrible" behavior is "common knowledge."
He made the shock admission on Twitter, and wrote: "Sorry but it comes from the top @TheEllenShow."
11
11
A black woman, who once worked for Ellen, told the website that she experienced “racist comments, actions and microaggressions” during her year and a half as an employee.
She also alleged that a main writer for the show told her at a company party: “I’m sorry, I only know the names of the white people who work here.”
YouTuber NikkieTutorials said appearing on the show had always been a dream, but she was none too happy with her experience when the dream became a reality.
Nikkie also claimed the host was "distant and cold.”
11
11
11
Former bodyguard Tom Majercak called the talk show host “cold” and “demeaning” after working with her at the 2014 Oscars, and claimed that "Ellen is the one person that I've been assigned to -- and I've been assigned to quite a few celebrities -- that has never taken the time to say hi to me."
Executive producers Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner said in a joint statement that they “have strived to create an open, safe and inclusive work environment” over the past 16 years.
“We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience,” the EPs added.
11
most read in entertainment
Ellen broke her silence on Thursday, claiming that staffers did not "do their jobs as they knew I'd want them done."
In a letter sent to all staff, Ellen also promised: "to do my part in continuing to push myself and everyone around me to learn and grow."
She admitted that she had to take responsibility as her name was at the top, but that as the show has grown, she had "not been able to stay on top of everything" and had instead "relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I’d want them done."
But, she said: "Clearly some didn’t.
"That will now change and I’m committed to ensuring this does not happen again."
In the letter she also referenced how she herself had been "treated unfairly" in the 1990s when she first came out as gay, writing: "To think that any one of you felt that way is awful to me."
Neil Breen claims Ellen DeGeneres' staff 'ordered him not to look at or speak to' host as talk show investigated for 'toxic' culture