Ex-producer Hedda Muskat revealed to ZM’s Fletch, Vaughan and Megan that Ellen was well aware of what was going on behind the scenes and fostered the ‘culture of fear.’ Video / ZM
Portia de Rossi has denied reports her wife, Ellen DeGeneres, is planning to walk away from her show amid a damaging few months for the embattled TV host.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show is currently under an internal company investigation by WarnerMedia after numerous accusations by former staffers. It followed a bombshell Buzzfeed report published last month shared stories from 10 former and one current Ellen employee – all speaking anonymously – describing a "toxic work environment" with a culture of "racism, fear and intimidation".
In a new video of de Rossi, 47, out on a walk with her mother and dogs in California, a photographer could be heard asking about DeGeneres, the actress' wife of 12 years.
"She's doing great," de Rossi said, in the video obtained by Page Six.
When the photographer pressed her on whether DeGeneres intended to continue hosting her show, the Arrested Development star was firm in her reply: "Yes, she is."
DeGeneres' wife Portia de Rossi has given an update on her TV future. Photo / Getty Images
Earlier this month, reports began circulating that DeGeneres was ready to call it quits on her show amid mounting pressure and a storm of negative publicity around the workplace allegations.
According to the Daily Mail, the host, 62, told executives at Telepictures and Warner Bros that she'd had enough and wanted to walk away.
"She feels she can't go on and the only way to recover her personal brand from this is to shut down the show," a source told the publication.
"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."
It came after staff at her show hit back at the apology letter she sent out last month, branding her a "phony" and claiming anyone who complained to her about the ongoing issues "would've been fired".
"Don't think for a minute anything she has said in that apology means anything. She created and then enabled this toxic culture to go on for so long," one staffer said.
The TV host has attracted plenty of bad publicity this year. Photo / Getty Images
"If anyone had come to her or those three [executive producers] to complain, they would've been fired."
"Inside Telepictures we've had enough of her. She is a phony who does not practise what she preaches," another source told Daily Mail.
"The behaviour of her show executives has been appalling, but [Ellen] is no better. In fact, she is the worst. It's outrageous that she is trying to pretend that this is all a shock to her. The fish rots from the head, and Ellen is the head."
The insider went on to claim that DeGeneres "hates coming to work", "struggles to be nice to people" and has "utter contempt for her audience".
"She has been phoning it in for so long, and only staying for the money and celebrity it affords her," the source said.
"We've dealt with her BS for so many years; she's not innocent at all, she's not nice and the show is not filled with happiness."
