Ellen DeGeneres is ready to walk away from show business. The comedian, 66, said that she’s “done” with being in the public eye after her Netflix stand-up special comes out later this year. DeGeneres made the declaration at her comedy show in Santa Rosa, Calif., on July 1.
“This is the last time you’re going to see me. After my Netflix special, I’m done,” she said, according to SFGate.
When a fan asked DeGeneres if she’ll voice Dory again from “Finding Nemo” and “Finding Dory,” she replied, “No, I’m going bye-bye, remember.”
DeGeneres is currently on her “Ellen’s Last Stand … Up” tour. She recently canceled four shows with no explanation.
Before the tour, DeGeneres stayed under the radar after her eponymous talk show ended with Season 19 in May 2022 following toxic workplace claims.
In 2020, current and former staffers spoke anonymously about their alleged experience on set of the talk show for a BuzzFeed News report. She apologized to staff at the time and producers Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman and Jonathan Norman exited the show.
“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,” she wrote at the time in a memo, per the Hollywood Reporter. “That will now change and I’m committed to ensuring this does not happen again.”
DeGeneres reportedly addressed the controversy at her July 1 stand-up show.
“I got kicked out of show business for being mean,” she told the crowd, per SFGate.
“I can be demanding and impatient and tough. I am a strong woman. I am many things, but I am not mean,” she added.
The Emmy winner went on, “I used to say, ‘I don’t care what people say about me.’ Now I realize I said that during the height of my popularity.”
DeGeneres previously spoke about the accusations against her while performing in West Hollywood in April.
“The hate went on for a long time and I would try to avoid looking at the news. The ‘be kind’ girl wasn’t kind. That was the headline,” she said to fans at the Largo.
She also joked that she became the “most hated person in America.”
Two weeks before “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” aired its final episode, the former Oscars host told the Hollywood Reporter that her decision to end the show had nothing to do with behind-the-scenes controversy.
“When you’re a creative person, you constantly need to be challenged – and as great as this show is, and as fun as it is, it’s just not a challenge anymore,” she insisted.