Portia de Rossi has urged people to “stand by” her wife Ellen Degeneres amid the allegations surrounding her talk show.
Producers of ‘The Ellen Degeneres Show’ have been accused of creating a “toxic work environment” by several former employees, as well as sexual misconduct claims being placed against two of the show’s top executives.
Whilst Ellen, 62, was not accused of any wrongdoing in the allegations, she sent a letter of apology to her staff last week, which caused backlash after actor Brad Garrett – who appeared on the chat show six times between 2004 and 2007 – accused her of treating people “horribly”.
And now, Ellen’s wife Portia has asked for people to show kindness toward the chat show host, as she also thanked those who have already showed their support.
Sharing an image on Instagram which read “I stand by Ellen”, the 47-year-old model wrote: “To all our fans….we see you. Thank you for your support. #stopbotattacks #IStandWithEllenDeGeneres #IStandByEllen #IstandByEllenDeGeneres #ellendegeneres #ellen #theellenshow #ellenshow #bekindtooneanother (sic)”
The ‘Scandal’ actress defence of Ellen comes after ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ star Brad slammed her on Twitter last week.
The 60-year-old actor wrote: “Sorry but it comes from the top @TheEllenShow. Know more than one who were treated horribly by her. Common knowledge.”
Meanwhile, in her letter to staff, Ellen said she was “disappointed” to hear about the allegations surrounding her show’s producers.
She wrote: “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. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case.
“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.”
Singer Katy Perry has publicly defended Ellen DeGeneres in the wake of allegations made about behaviour backstage on her talk show.
Now, Katy has now offered her support to the host, insisting all of her experiences on ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ have been “positive” and she also praised Ellen for her “continual fight for equality”.
Portia and Ellen who began dating in 2004, got married at their Beverly Hills home on 16 August 2008, witnessed by their mothers and 17 other guests. On 6 August 2010, de Rossi filed a petition to legally change her name to Portia Lee James DeGeneres. The petition was granted on 23 September 2010.