'Ellen' Ending: Exec Names Top Comic as 'Favorite' to Replace Ellen DeGeneres

Earlier this week, it was announced that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be ending after the upcoming nineteenth season, which will wrap in 2022. Of course, there has already been some discussion over who will be taking host Ellen DeGeneres' place as the daytime television queen. According to Page Six, Tiffany Haddish is the "favorite" to take over for DeGeneres with a talk show of her own.

Haddish has filled in for DeGeneres in the past on the talk show, so it wouldn't be so out of left field to see her helm her own series. A senior NBCUniversal source told Page Six about the possibility of Haddish developing her own show, "Tiffany is a favorite, she has humor and empathy in spades. She's top of the list to get a daytime show – she's a fresh voice." While higher-ups are reportedly considering Haddish for this role, it should be noted that she wouldn't be taking over DeGeneres' talk show. DeGeneres owns the rights to Ellen, meaning that whatever project that Haddish would be a part of would need to be something new.

Following the news that Ellen would be ending after nearly two decades on television, DeGeneres gave an interview to The Hollywood Reporter about the announcement. She told the publication that she wanted to leave the show as she felt as though it wasn't providing her with an adequate "challenge." Despite the fact that Ellen was at the center of a workplace harassment scandal in 2020, DeGeneres has claimed that it was always her intention to end the series after the upcoming nineteenth season.

"I'm a creative person, and when you're a creative person you constantly need to be challenged, which is why I decided to host the Oscars or why I decided to go back to stand-up when I didn't think I would," she told THR. "I just needed something to challenge me. And as great as this show is, and as fun as it is, it's just not a challenge anymore. I need something new to challenge me." DeGeneres directly addressed whether the behind-the-scenes drama had any bearing on her decision, to which she denied that it did. She added, "It was very hurtful to me. I mean, very. But if I was quitting the show because of that, I wouldn't have come back this season."