LGBTQ+ comedian Margaret Cho has spoken about her relationship with Ellen DeGeneres, calling the former talkshow host “weird and not nice”.
DeGeneres’ public image has taken a hit in the past few years, after allegations of poor treatment of staff on The Ellen DeGeneres Show came to light.
Now, appearing on The Kelly Mantle Show, Cho said: “Ellen is so”, before Mantle suggested, “complicated?” to which Cho agreed. The Fire Island actress went on to say that the public perception of DeGeneres was now “closer” to reality. She then described her as “a mean girl”.
Cho, who said she’d known her fellow comedian since the 80s, went on to say there was a level of “suspicion between us”, adding: “Ellen was, like, really weird and not nice to me for most of my career.” She remembered opening for DeGeneres in comedy clubs before the Finding Nemo star became famous.
Cho said that later “when I would do her show in the 2000s, she acted like we just met. And I’m like: ‘B****, what? That’s weird, we go way back’.” She then labelled DeGeneres’ behaviour “creepy and weird”.
She also recalled seeing David Bowie perform the night before he went on DeGeneres’ chat show.
“I had come to his show wearing this giant Chinese emperor outfit. He was thrilled about it and talked at length [on The Ellen DeGeneres Show] about it, and [DeGeneres] cut it out, which made me so mad,” Cho claimed.
Cho branded the move “rude”, adding she had taken it personally “cause I decided to”.
In 2020, BuzzFeed News reported allegations of a “toxic” environment behind the scenes of DeGeneres’ show.
Several former members of staff claimed that DeGeneres’ optimistic and happy personality was “bull****” that “only happens when the cameras are on“.
The long-running series ended in May 2022, and DeGeneres was left “devastated” by the allegations, later saying “it consumed me for a long time”.
More recently, DeGeneres has been giving her fans a glimpse into her new life in England. She and wife Portia de Rossi moved to the Cotswolds after Donald Trump won a second term as president.
PinkNews has contacted Ellen DeGeneres’ representatives for comment.
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