Ellen DeGeneres Tests Positive For COVID-19
Wear your mask, people!
Ellen DeGeneres is the latest celebrity to test positive for coronavirus. The talk show host shared her health update with a statement posted to her social media on Thursday (12/10).
“Hi everyone, I want to let you know that I tested positive with COVID-19,” she wrote in an note to fans. “Fortunately, I’m feeling fine right now. Anyone who has been in close contact has been notified, and I am following all proper CDC guidelines. I’ll see you all again after the holidays. Please stay healthy and safe. Love, Ellen.”
There has been no update as to whether Ellen’s wife Portia de Rossi or anyone on The Ellen Show staff has tested positive.
The news comes just months after The Ellen Show resumed filming following a months long shutdown from the pandemic. The show returned with a virtual audience as well as in studio guests or guests on Zoom. In October, masked fans were allowed to return into the studio, with limited capacity.
Her COVID-19 results also come after a rough summer for the talk show host, as many staffers came out with accusations alleging a toxic work environment. Warner Brothers launched an investigation which led to the firing of several producers. DeGeneres addressed the allegations and new changes when her show returned for its 18th season in September.
As you may have heard this summer, there were allegations of a toxic work environment at our show,” she began in her opening monologue. “And then there was an investigation. I learned that things happened here that never should have happened. I take that very seriously. And I want to say, I am so sorry to the people who were affected. I know that I’m in a position of privilege and power. I realized that with that comes responsibility and I take responsibility for what happens at my show. This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show. I am Ellen DeGeneres. My name is there. My name is there. My name is on underwear. We have had a lot of conversations over the last few weeks about the show, our workplace and what we want for the future. We have made the necessary changes. And today we are starting a new chapter.”
“There were also articles in the press and on social media that said that I am not who I appear to be on TV because I became known as the ‘Be Kind Lady,'” she continued. “And here’s how that happened. I started saying ‘be kind to one another’ after a young man named Tyler Clemente took his own life after being bullied for being gay. I thought the world needed more kindness. And it was a reminder that we all needed that. And I think we need it more than ever right now. Being known as the ‘Be Kind Lady’ is a tricky position to be in. So let me give you some advice out there. If anybody’s thinking of changing their title or giving yourself a nickname, do not go with the ‘Be Kind Lady.'”
“The truth is I am that person that you see on TV. I am also a lot of other things. I sometimes I get sad. I get mad. I get anxious. I get frustrated. I get impatient. And I am working on all of that. I am a work in progress and I’m especially working on the impatience thing because, and it’s not going well because it’s not happening fast enough. I am a talk show host and you know that. But maybe some of you know I was an actress. I’ve played a straight woman in movies. So I’m a pretty good actress. I don’t think that I’m that good that I could come out here every day for 17 years and fool you. This is me. And my intention is to always be the best person I can be. And if I’ve ever let someone down, if I’ve ever hurt their feelings, I am so sorry for that. If that’s ever the case, I have let myself down and I’ve hurt myself as well, because I always try to grow as a person. I look at everything that comes into my life as an opportunity to learn. I got into this business to make people laugh and feel good.”
“Now I am a boss of 270 people, 270 people who help make this show. All I want is for every single one of them to be happy and to be proud to work here. This has been a horrible summer for people all around the world. People are losing their jobs. People are losing loved ones to a pandemic. People are losing their homes and lives in raging fires that are going on. There’s blatant racial injustice all around us. I watched the news and I feel like where, where do we even begin? So my hope is that we can still be a place of happiness and joy. I still want to be the one hour a day that people can go to escape and laugh. I want to continue to help all the people that we help every day. And I’m committed to making this the best season that we have ever had.”
No word on whether or not filming for The Ellen Show will continue with guest hosts, or if the show will be shut down completely until after the holidays. The show has featured several guest hosts recently, including Garth Brooks. Dierks Bentley and Russell Dickerson also recently appeared as musical guests.
