Ellen DeGeneres goes the Oprah way, desperately tries to stay relevant amid reports of her show being scrapped
Ellen DeGeneres is presently focusing on empowering her namesake digital network by adding new shows and giving new artists a chance to be famous after reports surrounding the cancellation of her own show kept doing the rounds. The new shows range from chat shows about body, health and self-care to fun celebrity interactions which will be "all about love".
According to CCN, DeGeneres might be trying to follow in her friend Oprah Winfrey's footsteps when it comes to keeping herself relevant in the entertainment industry by making a name for herself through her network, especially after her show continues to slide in ratings. We reported last week that all signs seemed to point to the possibility of 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' getting canceled as the long-running talk show continues to drop in ratings following scandalous rumors about the host, whom both guests, as well as employees on her show, have accused of being "mean." According to TVNewsCheck, the show has recently plummeted to an all-time low when it comes to ratings. Now, rumours are rife that the host-comedian is "desperately trying to stay relevant by reviving her namesake network."
It was reported last week that Degeneres signed Sarah Hyland, Ellie Kemper and Tiffany Haddish to the Ellen Digital Network (EDN), which was launched in 2016. Hyland will front a show titled 'Lady Parts' alongside OB-GYN Dr. Sheryl A. Ross, where the actress and the doctor will chat with celebrity guests about sex, anatomy and health. Kemper, meanwhile, will star in 'Help Me Gen Z', where she will be talking to "Generation Zers" to get their perspective on various topics. The details of Haddish's as-yet-untitled show are not known yet but the message will be in-sync with the other "positive shows" on the namesake network.
TikTok star and vegan influencer Tabitha Brown was also given a show on the network. It is a web show titled 'All Love' which will feature the viral sensation giving advice on cooking, parenting, social media and self-care. Although there were a couple of stars like Ashley Graham and DJ tWich – who has a regular place in DeGeneres' talk show and previously had their own shows on EDN, but none of them were successful.
EDN falls under six-year-old parent company Ellen Digital Ventures (EDV) — a joint venture between DeGeneres and Warner Bros’ Digital Networks. EDN is composed of short-form video platform EllenTube, mobile gaming app Heads Up!, and the Ellen On The Go podcast. The network has previously said that it boasts of 260 million collective followers and averages 1 billion monthly views across all its platforms combined.
As the 62-year-old talk show host refuses to address the rumors against her, the ratings of DeGeneres's show reportedly fell 14% as the latest Season 17 recorded a low viewership of 1.2, which put her show behind shows like 'Live with Kelly and Ryan,' which had a 2.0 and 'Dr. Phil' with a 1.5. Previously, it hit its lowest point when it tied with 'Dr. Phil' a few weeks ago at 1.5. But even after that, it showed no signs of improving and instead, continued to slide in popularity.
It all started in April when beauty YouTuber Nikkie de Jager accused the 62-year-old talk show host of being “cold and distant” when she appeared on her show in January. In the same month, she incurred the wrath of the social media by joking that being quarantined in her $27-million mansion during the coronavirus pandemic was “like being in jail.” There were also reports of crew members of the show facing a 60 percent reduction in pay even though the show continues to air amid the pandemic. The news drew a lot of criticism for the comedian. Social media, in fact, went on to call her 'very nasty' and 'a garbage human being' for not taking care of her employees.