James Corden Reportedly in Consideration to Replace Ellen DeGeneres
From Carpool Karaoke to The Ellen DeGeneres Show...
According to a new report from The Sun, actor and television personality James Corden is in talks to replace DeGeneres as the host of her eponymous talk show. Speaking anonymously to the entertainment outlet, an insider at NBC said Corden is being treated as "the long term successor." DeGeneres, a pioneer for LGBTQ representation on daytime TV, has hosted the popular show since it began in 2003.
As NewNowNext has covered at length, DeGeneres has been accused of being exceptionally rude to former employees and celebrity guests alike. The tensions came to a head in mid-July when Buzzfeed News published a damning deep-dive into the toxic work environment on the set of the long-running talk show. Multiple former staffers recalled a culture of fear, intimidation, and racism toward Black staffers.
The controversy attracted so much bad press that WarnerMedia and Telepictures, the show's production studio, launched an internal investigation into the workplace. (And that's not even factoring in DeGeneres's now-infamous "friendship" with former president George W. Bush.) It also prompted DeGeneres herself to issue a personal apology.
"On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness—no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect," the 62-year-old talk-show host wrote to her employees. "Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry. Anyone who knows me knows it’s the opposite of what I believe and what I hoped for our show."
The Sun's anonymous source added that recent allegations of toxicity and harassment in the workplace "fast tracked everything," and that Corden "was being eyed for Ellen's job in the long term before any of this came to light." The British TV star currently hosts The Late Late Show on CBS.
WarnerMedia has yet to confirm the rumor, although execs have maintained that the talk show isn't going anywhere.
