"The Ellen DeGeneres Show": Sexual Misconduct and Ellen's Full Apology

Update 8/18/2020: In an announcement from Warner Bros. on Monday two more executives were said to have "parted ways" with the Ellen DeGeneres Show.

In addition to Ed Glavin, executive producer Kevin Leman has now been ousted as well as co-executive producer Jonathan Norman, who is accused of having "groomed" an employee by taking him to various concerts and events that were loosely work-related before attempting to perform oral sex on him.

Remaining on as the show's executives are veterans Andy Lassner, Mary Connelly, and Derek Westervelt, along with DeGeneres herself.

It seems that every week there's a new story that casts Ellen DeGeneres in an unflattering light.

It started with her problematic friendship with George W. Bush, and has more recently included reports of her cruelty toward strangers, the way her show's staff was left feeling abandoned during the lockdown, and the generally toxic work environment that current and former crew members have reported.

The revelation of that last issue prompted Warner Bros.—distributors of The Ellen DeGeneres Show—to launch an investigation into the show's work culture with the help of parent company WarnerMedia and an outside firm. The investigation, involving interviews with former and current employees, has already unearthed allegations of sexual misconduct and other forms of harassment against two of the show's trio of executive producers.

It has already been announced that one of these men—Ed Glavin, who "had a reputation for being handsy with women," and was known to manage staff through fear and intimidation—will no longer be a part of the show. The other accused EP, Kevin Leman, has denied "any kind of sexual impropriety" amid allegations that he has groped various staffers and solicited sexual favors at a company party in 2013.

With all of this going on, DeGeneres issued an apology to staffers acknowledging that the show has not been "a place of happiness" and promising to take a more active role in ensuring a positive work culture. You can read the full apology letter below:

Hey everybody—it's Ellen. On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness—no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry. Anyone who knows me knows it's the opposite of what I believe and what I hoped for our show.

I could not have the success I've had without all of your contributions. My name is on the show and everything we do and I take responsibility for that. Alongside Warner Bros, we immediately began an internal investigation and we are taking steps, together, to correct the issues. 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. That will now change and I'm committed to ensuring this does not happen again.

I'm also learning that people who work with me and for me are speaking on my behalf and misrepresenting who I am and that has to stop. As someone who was judged and nearly lost everything for just being who I am, I truly understand and have deep compassion for those being looked at differently, or treated unfairly, not equal, or—worse—disregarded. To think that any one of you felt that way is awful to me.

It's been way too long, but we're finally having conversations about fairness and justice. We all have to be more mindful about the way our words and actions affect others, and I'm glad the issues at our show were brought to my attention. I promise to do my part in continuing to push myself and everyone around me to learn and grow. It's important to me and to Warner Bros. that everyone who has something to say can speak up and feels safe doing so.

I am so proud of the work we do and the fun and joy we all help put out in the world. I want everyone at home to love our show and I want everyone who makes it to love working on it. Again, I'm so sorry to anyone who didn't have that experience. If not for COVID, I'd have done this in person, and I can't wait to be back on our stage and see you all then.

Stay safe and healthy.

Love,

Ellen