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Portia de Rossi breaks silence on Ellen DeGeneres rumours

It’s been a tumultuous few months for Ellen, who has come up against a stream of allegations about ‘toxic’ behaviour in the workplace and now her wife is standing up or her.

Australian actress Portia de Rossi, who married the The Ellen DeGeneres Show host in 2008, has taken to her Instagram to show her support for her wife.

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi attend the Netflix 2020 Golden Globes After Party on January 05, 2020 in Los Angeles, California.
Ellen DeGeneres' wife, Portia de Rossi has broken her silence on the TV host's recent scandal. Photo: Getty Images

“To all our fans....we see you,” the actress captioned a photo that read “I Stand By Ellen.”

She also included the hashtags #bekindtooneanother #IStandWithEllenDeGeneres, #IStandByEllen‪ and #IstandByEllenDeGeneres.

Portia de Rossi Instagram message about Ellen
Portia uploaded this image to her Instagram page. Photo: Instagram/Portia de Rossi

James Corden to replace Ellen?

It comes just hours after rumours swirled that UK Late Late Show host James Corden looks set to take over from Ellen at the reigns of the popular daytime show.

A source told The Sun that NBC Entertainment Chairman Paul Telegdy is a "huge fan of James" and has him "high on his wanted list for talent and a long term replacement for Ellen" in the instance that the role became available.

"This issue has fast tracked everything and made everyone look at the future today," the insider said.

"James Corden was being eyed for Ellen's job in the long term before any of this came to light. Now this shocking new development places a spotlight on the next step.

James Corden arrives at the 2019 Hollywood Foreign Press Association's Annual Grants Banquet at the Beverly Wilshire Beverly Hills on Wednesday, July 31, 2019.
Rumours are swirling that James Corden is set to take over from Ellen. Photo: Getty Images

"James and his team have been trailblazers in modern TV, taking the once considered graveyard chat show slot into a cutting edge format with huge online, social media and global recognition."

The Ellen Show under investigation

Last week, it was revealed that The Ellen DeGeneres Show is under investigation following multiple allegations of its “toxic work environment”.

Over the past few months, the show has been plagued by rumours and recently, a number of staff and former workers on the daytime talk show spoke out anonymously to Buzzfeed, slamming the reported mistreatment they experienced during their time at the show.

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In response, WarnerMedia is believed to have launched an internal investigation, with a third party firm reportedly being hired to interview current and former staff about their experiences while working on the Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Allegations from current and former employees include claims of being fired after taking medical leave or bereavement days, facing microaggressions and a culture of bullying and favouritism by executive producers.

Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been hit by a stream of allegations. Photo: Getty Images

No specific claims were made against Ellen, although some staff claimed they were told not to speak to the TV presenter and comedian if she was in the office.

Executive producers Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner said in a statement: "We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It's not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us.

"For the record, the day to day responsibility of The Ellen Show is completely on us. We take all of this very seriously and we realise, as many in the world are learning, that we need to do better, are committed to do better, and we will do better."

Ellen faces backlash

Back in May it was revealed that the 63-year-old superstar TV host is struggling with the rumours, which just don’t seem to be going away.

“Ellen is at the end of her rope,” an insider told Us Weekly.

“She thought this was all just sour grapes from a few haters. But it’s not a passing thing — the hits just keep coming.”

It comes just days after a former staffer told the New York Post: "The stories are all true!"

"Is she always nice? No." They continued: "It irritates me that people think she’s all sweetness and light and she gets away with it," they added.

Ellen DeGeneres, winner of the awards for favorite animated movie voice, favorite daytime TV host, and favorite comedic collaboration, speaks at the People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles. Degeneres says she’s “furious” so many black men have been shot by police and “nothing seems to change.” Speaking on her show Friday, April 20, 2018, with CNN’s Van Jones, Degeneres said she’s “ashamed.”
Ellen is said to be 'at the end of her rope' as the rumours just won't go away. Photo: Getty Images

Ellen, who famously ends her show telling viewers to "be kind to one another", first came up against allegations against her character in a Twitter thread, which asked people to respond with ‘insane stories’ they’d heard about Ellen ‘being mean’.

People responded with allegations of wild demands the star has reportedly made and what she was really like on the set of the show.

Tom Majercak, a former security guard who worked for Ellen and her family when she hosted the 2014 Academy Awards, alleged to Fox News that the star was "very cold".

He claimed that while her wife Portia was delightful to work with, Ellen didn’t engage at all beyond a ‘side glance out of her eye’, saying he was shocked to witness her ‘false facade’ drop away.

"It's bugged me for years," he admitted. "I see this person come across as being very enlightened and positive and awesome and everybody loves her and is in awe and that's really not the case when you meet her in person."

He added Ellen was the only celebrity he has ever worked with who didn’t greet him when introduced.

“She's not the person she portrays to be that she's playing off of society,” he said. “That's my opinion.”

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