‘Ellen DeGeneres Show’ Producer Debunks Cancellation Rumors

The Ellen DeGeneres Show is at the center of a toxic workplace scandal, which has only continued to grow to include allegations of sexual harassment against some of the executive producers in the past week. Host Ellen DeGeneres has apologized in a letter to her crew, while executive producer Andy Lassner is fighting back against rumors the show would be canceled. Meanwhile, a source close to series producer Telepictures claimed DeGeneres was ready to walk away from her show, the longest-running daytime talk show still on the air.

Back on Thursday, Lassner appeared to reference the show’s scandals. “Me: I really think 2020 is gonna turn around and start getting better. 2020: Lol, I’m gonna make your bed the epicenter,” he tweeted. This statement prompted one Twitter fan to wish him well and said they hope Lassner would find a job quickly if Ellen is canceled. “Nobody is going off the air,” Lassner responded.

Earlier this week, Telepictures parent company WarnerMedia launched an investigation into the show’s workplace environment, following additional allegations against senior staffers on the show. This prompted DeGeneres to directly send a message to her staffers, published by The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday. The Emmy-winner vowed to “correct the issues,” adding, “As we’ve grown exponentially, I’ve not been able to stay on top of everything and relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I’d want them done. Clearly some didn’t.” DeGeneres is “committed to ensuring this does not happen again,” she wrote.

Two sources told The Hollywood Reporter that executive producer Ed Glavin is likely to be fired, as many of the most shocking claims have been made against him. On Thursday, Glavin was named in another BuzzFeed News report, as former employees accused him of sexual misconduct and harassment. Former staffers also accused executive producer Kevin Leman of sexual harassment. Some former employees said DeGeneres was insulated from the behind-the-scenes environment, while others told BuzzFeed it was difficult to believe DeGeneres would be unaware.

Amid this controversy, a Telepictures insider told The Daily Mail Friday that DeGeneres has considered leaving the show. “She feels she can’t go on and the only way to recover her personal brand from this is to shut down the show,” the source claimed. “The truth is she knew what was going on, it’s her show. The buck stops with her. She can blame every executive under the sun – but Ellen is ultimately the one to blame.”

When BuzzFeed News published toxic workplace allegations in early July, Glavin, Lassner and executive producer Mary Connelly said they were “truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It’s not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us.”