Entertainment- In an interview with The Wrap, a former producer of "
The Ellen DeGeneres Show " described a "culture of fear" on set and called the show's eponymous host "toxic." - Hedda Muskat told The Wrap about an incident early on in the show after she was hired in which she said executive producer Ed Glavin screamed at a staff member in front of everybody, and DeGeneres "giggled."
- "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" is currently under internal investigation by WarnerMedia after allegations of racial discrimination, sexual misconduct, and a toxic work environment from former employees.
- DeGeneres released a letter of apology to employees, saying she was "disappointed" to learn that people had been treated without respect, but Muskat told The Wrap: "Ed was a bully, but he worked for Ellen. It was her show."
Hedda Muskat, a producer who used to work on "The
Muskat — who was hired back in 2003 as a producer when the chat show was still in development — told The Wrap about an incident during a staff meeting where new-at-the-time executive producers Ed Glavin and Mary Connelly were introduced to the rest of the existing team.
Muskat said Glavin screamed at one member of staff in front of everybody else. "He just went off on them. His whole face turned red … We were stunned."
"I was waiting for Ellen to say something. 'Whoa, Ed, don't talk like that,'" Musket said. "Do you know what she did? She giggled. She crossed her legs up on the chair and she said, 'Well, I guess every production needs their dog.' And from then we knew. Ed was going to be the barking dog — her dog."
Muskat added: "I had never seen this before. I had never been around a toxic host."
Muskat's comments come after a slew of allegations against DeGeneres, including a Twitter thread describing DeGeneres as "one of the meanest people alive," which garnered almost 3,000 responses.
—Kevin T. Porter (@KevinTPorter) March 20, 2020
"The Ellen DeGeneres Show" is also currently being investigated by Telepictures and
DeGeneres responded to the allegations in a letter to the show's staff, writing that she was "disappointed" to find out that staffers on her show felt unhappy and disrespected. She apologized to anyone who felt they were not treated with respect.
Muskat told The Wrap that while she wasn't aware of sexual misconduct, she was aware of the show's diversity issues.
"I wasn't privy to hiring decisions … [but] I was there full time for 12 months, and I did not see a diverse staff," Muskat said. "And if I'm not seeing them there, that means they're being shut out."
DeGeneres' wife Portia de Rossi has posted on Instagram in support of DeGeneres, writing: "To all our fans....we see you. Thank you for your support."
Insider has reached out to representatives for Ellen DeGeneres for comment.
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Why 2020 has been the year of backlash against Ellen DeGeneres