The ending of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” closed a huge chapter in daytime TV, but it reportedly also left some people associated with the talk show dealing with fallout they did not expect. DeGeneres ended the show in May 2022, wrapping up its 19-season run. Now, alum Kalen Allen claims that the scandal around the show did not just affect Ellen DeGeneres’ public image, but it also made it harder for others from the show to move on in their own careers.
‘Ellen DeGeneres Show’ ending over scandal ‘really hurt’ alum who couldn’t get a job
Kalen Allen appeared on With Love With Ty Cole, sharing the behind-the-scenes reality of Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show ending during a long interview on YouTube. He spoke about the show, his work, grief, and what changed for him once the show ended.
While looking back at the period when negative stories about the show dominated headlines, Allen said he learned about the allegations when the public did. He said, “I would just like to first say that I found out about all this at the same time that the world did,” explaining why he did not speak up the way some viewers demanded at the time.
Allen claimed he prepared a statement supporting staff, but “I got a call, and the call said that if I were to release that, then that would be against my NDA.”
Moreover, he described the professional strain, recalling, “It felt like after it happened, one, it felt like it became a scarlet letter for all of us that worked at the show,” adding, “It took forever for people to even book me for stuff.” He explained, “Now the show is over, now we not working, now we trying to find jobs and nobody will hire us because of where we were.”
Giving an example, Allen said, “My manager gets on the call, and that same producer says to her, ‘Well, you know he’s just a little too close to Ellen of it all.’”
Even so, Allen made a point to separate his own experience on set from what others reported, saying his role as on-air talent shaped how people treated him — but he did not sugarcoat the hit he felt afterward.
