The celebs banned from appearing on Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show
A number of celebrities are probably thankful that they’ve been banned from appearing on Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show.
The comedian’s reputation has taken a huge hit this year due to multiple accusations from staffers and show guests claiming she’s “not nice”.
“Ellen is at the end of her rope,” an insider told Us Weekly. “She thought this was all just sour grapes from a few haters. But it’s not a passing thing — the hits just keep coming.”
But while some stars may now reject an invite to appear on the show, others won’t get that opportunity as they’ve been black-listed by the host herself.
Caitlyn Jenner
DeGeneres allegedly banned Caitlyn Jenner, 69, from her show in 2017 after she released her tell-all memoir, The Secrets of My Life, in which she claimed DeGeneres “alienated” her from the LGBTQ community after coming on the show two years prior and saying she hadn’t accepted gay marriage.
“I have to admit that I remember 15 years ago, 20 years ago, whenever it was that the whole gay marriage issue came up, I was not for it,” Jenner explained in 2015.
“I am a traditionalist. I mean, I’m older than most people in the audience. I like tradition and it’s always been between a man and a woman and I’m thinking I don’t quite get it.”
Later on, she said she accepted gay marriage and that it was a “wonderful thing to see”.
Vince Vaughn
The 49-year-old was reportedly banned after his 2011 comedy The Dilemma showed Vaughn’s character saying: “Electric cars are gay. I mean, not homosexual, but my-parents-are-chaperoning-the-dance gay.”
Later on, Anderson Cooper came on the show and expressed how disappointed he was with the quip.
The two eventually made amends and Vaughn appeared on her talk show a few years later.
However, a source said that Vaughn and DeGeneres “love each other” and that he stopped appearing because he had nothing to promote.
Kathy Griffin
The Finding Nemo star wouldn’t allow Kathy Griffin to appear on her show given their longstanding feud, which according to Griffin, began when DeGeneres opened her show with a monologue about how “mean” Griffin could be.
“Ellen did a monologue about how mean I am,” Griffin told Us Weekly. “I was in the dressing room like, ‘S**t! You’re another woman comic, c’mon!’”
Griffin later revealed she was banned from DeGeneres’ show. Later, the talk show host slammed her to W Magazine: “I know she had a big thing about wanting to be on the show, and we didn’t book her,” she said. “She did a whole thing that I banned her from the show. I didn’t ban her from the show, because first you have to be on the show to be banned.”
Kim Burrell
The gospel singer was set to appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show alongside Pharrell to promote their song from Hidden Figures, but DeGeneres banned her from making an appearance after she made homophobic comments.
“I actually didn’t know her, her name is Kim Burrell. She made a statement she was doing a Facebook Live and she said some very not nice things about homosexuals, so I didn’t feel that was good of me to have her on the show to give her a platform after she was saying things about me,” DeGeneres explained on her show before letting Pharrell discuss Burrell.
While Pharrell disagreed with the comments Burrell made, he insisted that people should “love each other” despite differing views.
“I love her, just like I love everybody else and we all got to get used to that,” he said. “We all have to get used to everyone’s differences and understand that this is a big, gigantic, beautiful, colourful world and it only works with inclusion and empathy. It only works that way.”
He added that “sometimes the divisive stuff works in life. We learned that lesson last year that sometimes divisiveness works. But you have to choose what side you’re on. I’m choosing empathy. I’m choosing inclusion. I’m choosing love for everybody just trying to lift everyone. Even when I disagree with someone, I’m wishing them the best and hoping for the best because we can’t win the other way.”
Sherri Shepherd
Sherri Shepherd used to be an Ellen show regular, after appearing on the first season of the show a number of times.
It stopped when she began making comments on The View that were perceived as anti-gay, an insider told Page Six.
“When Sherri was on The View, she used to get booked on the Ellen show all the time. After she came out on The View taking a stance against gay marriage, the Ellen show refused to book Sherri,” our insider said. “They never gave a reason but the writing was on the wall.
“Ellen is obviously a hypocrite,” the source explained. “She said she can be friends with people who have different views from hers, yet she won’t give those people her platform and block them from appearing on her show.”
Shepherd has made multiple comments that were considered homophobic, including in one in 2014 when she said growing up Christian led her to believe homosexuality was a sin.
“I think people don’t know my heart,” she told Menendez. “I think people feel I’m very judgmental. I think people feel I’m very homophobic. If they knew me, and knew my heart … “You grow up being a Christian and you grow up believing homosexuality is a sin; you’re going to hell if you’re a homosexual. This is something that they teach in churches. So it’s something that I grew up believing.
“I might not agree with your lifestyle, but I love you,” she continued. “You may not agree with my lifestyle, but you love me … I don’t say it’s a choice. If you tell me, ‘Sherri, I was born gay.’ Okay. I’m not gonna argue with you, because I can’t tell you how you feel and what’s going on inside. I’m trying to make it into heaven by the skin of my teeth … I don’t know who I’m gonna see.”
She later apologised and claimed her comments were misinterpreted by the media.
She told The New York Post in 2019: “I’ve always admired and respected Ellen. She was the first to book me for my first talk show, where I went on to hold a record 23 appearances; and she championed for me to be a co-host on The View in 2007. The views and thoughts that I held have evolved from the statements I made on The View over 10 years ago and I support same sex marriage and partnerships. I am unsure why I haven’t been booked on Ellen’s show since my tenure on The View, but I welcome the opportunity to reconnect with Ellen to thank her for her support and opportunities that have happened for me because of her.”