15 Times Ellen's Jokes Went Too Far
We all like to be entertained, and there are few shows as consistently entertaining as The Ellen Show. But airing as often as it does, it was inevitable that at some point, the show's writers were GOING to produce something that overstepped the mark, and offended some viewers. As rumors swirl about the impending ending of the show's long and eventful run, we had to take the opportunity to review the most on-the-edge Ellen jokes ever to make it onto the air. "Funny or too far?" We asked ourselves just that when these notorious Ellen moments left us shocked and as open-mouthed as the dopey Dory, the animated fish whose voice Ellen played in the memorable children's movie Finding Nemo. Has Ellen had moments of talk show foolishness comparable with her fishy cartoon avatar? Although she has been recognized by ex-President Barack Obama (no less) for enshrining kindness in her humor, there were a few moments when it seemed to us like Ellen was doing her best Johnny Cash impression and "Walk[ing] the Line", if not stepping over it. Throughout the run of one of America's most popular talk shows, there certainly has been a lot of tomfoolery, including constant celebrity pranks and scaring Taylor Swift senseless literally ALL the time. But for the most part, it's amazing how few times Ellen has crossed the line with her comedy, given how often the show airs and how unafraid she is to make fun of her guests and life in general. But this doesn't mean that the show hasn't had its dicey moments, so let's review the biggest boo-boos ever to air on Ellen.
15 Titi Pierce
You may have heard that Ellen is being sued by a Georgia real estate agent named Titi Pierce. Titi says that she experienced emotional distress after Ellen featured some of her business' ads as part of a segment called "What's wrong with these signs?" Ellen intentionally mispronounced Titi's name to make a joke about boobs. Ellen set up the joke about Titi's name after showing a sign for a nursing home with a suggestive name, which has nothing to do with Titi's company. According to Titi, the name is supposed to be pronounced "tee-tee" and comes from the Nigerian word for "flower". Apparently, Titi's mother chose the name from a book of Nigerian names given to her by a close friend. Tit's company issued a statement saying: “Loving that our own Titi Pierce of CBRF was on the Ellen DeGeneres show, but wish it was because they knew how fabulous and classy Titi is and not to poke fun. We love you Titi and are proud to have you in the CBRF Family!” But Titi is suing Warner Bros. Entertainment for defamation, false light invasion of privacy, misappropriation of likeness, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Serious?
14 Ellen's Sofia Vergara wardrobe malfunction costume
We all remember the moment at the Emmy awards when Modern Family star Sofia Vergara's famous curves caused a wardrobe malfunction and viral meltdown, just 20 minutes before the show won a prestigious award. So maybe Sofia didn't need to be reminded of this moment by a playful Ellen, dressed in a padded suit replica of the dress. The 40-year-old actress initially seemed to take her wardrobe mishap in good humor, though, and shared photos of the fashion mishap on her Twitter page, with the caption: “Yes!!!! This happened 20 min before we won!!!! Jajajajja. I luv my life!!!!” The busted back zipper of the teal Zuhair Murad gown are easily spotted. To be honest, it was a fairly hilarious moment, and Sofia and Ellen already had a history of taking the proverbial Michael out of each other after Sofia appeared on the show. During the interview, Ellen also impersonated Sofia's distinctive Latino accent, but only after Sofia referenced it herself.
13 Michelle Obama's "rash"
Remember the time that Ellen went shopping with first lady Michelle Obama? Ellen's antics in the store would have stressed us out, so maybe the first lady didn't need extra pressure in addition to supporting her husband with running the country. Under the premise that after Obama finished in office, Michelle would have to learn how to look after herself without the help of the White House staff, Ellen satirized Michelle's 'ivory-towered', White House-insulated lifestyle. The skit almost got out of hand when Ellen announced via a loud speaker that the first lady of the United States was suffering from a "rash". Despite the bit being (no doubt) well intentioned, we were left wondering whether just a little bit more decorum wouldn't have been appropriate when it came to someone in such an important public office. Did Ellen terrorizing Michelle at the store trivialize her important public office? Or did it show us what a down-to-earth and secure first lady Michelle was?
12 President Obama's snake hips
The moment when The Ellen Show let us see that President Obama wasn't just running the country, he can also seriously dance was pretty mind-melting. The two jived to "Crazy in Love" by Beyonce in a very surreal meeting of popular culture and serious politics. In all of the celebrity dances that we've witnessed on Ellen, this was definitely the one that we CAN'T forget. It was almost as though we'd slipped into another reality when the President made his appearance on the show, a little bit like when Zach Galifianakis shushed the President on Between Two Ferns. Should the President be appearing on a TV chat show, let alone dancing with its host? We don't know the answer to that, but we do know that we loved watching. It was definitely a cool moment in American history when the President showed that he has some killer dance moves, as well as political ones.
11 ALL the dancing
The second most absurd dance on Ellen has to be the time she danced "Gangnam Style" with Psy and Britney Spears. The trio seemed to get right into the pretend cowboy move in a weird but wonderful moment of dance that rocked our worlds. Getting Psy on the show to explain the Gangnam phenomenon that literally TOOK OVER the internet was enough. Let alone pairing that with a visit from the Princess of Pop and America's sweetheart, Britney Spears herself. We literally couldn't believe our eyes when we first watched this skit, which like many others on the show, seemed to bring pop culture from totally different planets crashing together, leading to jaw-dropping moments like this one. We couldn't get over the Brit-Psy Gangnam Style dance, but that totally didn't stop us from wanting to join in. Weird and wonderful as such Ellen moments are, we have to say we love the way they bring everyone together through the medium of dance.
10 The marriage proposal rejection
Remember the time that The Ellen Show became the scene for a live TV marriage proposal? Followed by an awkward rejection? When Jodi turned down her boyfriend Jacob's proposal live on air, we didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Twitter literally exploded, as millions sympathized with poor Jacob's bad luck. That was, of course, until it was revealed that the stunt was an elaborate hoax by The Ellen Show, designed as an off-topic but novel way of promoting Ellen's "12 days of giveaways" holiday segment. In fact, the seemingly scorned love interest was, in reality, Ross, the same member of the production team who appeared in a similar sketch the previous year. The ruse nonetheless had the unwitting audience giddy with excitement, which quickly turned to surprised laughter and confusion when Jodi, her head in her hands, bursts into tears and replies "I can't, I'm sorry". Was this a prank too far?
9 Stripping Mario Lopez
When TV host and actor Mario Lopez came on the Ellen show, he may have revealed more about himself than he bargained for. You might remember him in the old days on Saved By the Bell, or more recently as a host of the X Factor with Khloe Kardashian, but the actor was promoting a new underwear line when he came on Ellen. Cue one TV host stripping the other (that is, Ellen stripping Mario). OK he does have an insane bod, but we couldn't believe that this daytime TV show actually featured stripping. A semi-reluctant Mario still seemed to be game enough, though, and if the stunt sells some underwear maybe it was worth it, but this was definitely one of the most shocking moments on the Ellen Show when we questioned whether the writers had gone too far. Did Ellen objectify Mario, or was this justified in the spirit of fun?
8 EVERY time that Ellen scared Taylor Swift
Ellen and Taylor Swift have a pretty hilarious relationship. From the time that Ellen told her she is "disgusting" for kissing an 8-year-old fan on the cheek, to Ellen holding a Spanish Inquisition into Taylor's dating life at every opportunity, the back-and-forth between the two of them is always good comedy. Ellen loves to scare Taylor, and also does so SO often on the show that we're not sure how Taylor even gets scared anymore, or why she keeps coming back for more. But has Ellen taken the prank on poor Taylor just a little bit too far? From being jumped out on by a farmer to having a man dressed in a full insect costume pop up on her from behind, Taylor has taken more than her fair share of scares on The Ellen Show. We're amazed at just how well Swifty takes Ellen's constant and merciless scare-tactics, and we're wondering - is this an Ellen joke too far?
7 But ESPECIALLY this time
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Now there's a planned, on-screen scare that Taylor was no doubt prepared for (if not by Ellen then surely because Ellen scares her EVERY time she comes on the show). And then there was this moment when Ellen pranks an unsuspecting Taylor Swift in her dressing room. Poor Swifty falls to the floor in shock (a pretty embarrassing reaction to an apparent assailant). It's a good thing that Taylor doesn't suffer from heart trouble (well at least only the kind she sings about), because anyone would be utterly terrified by being jumped out on with absolutely no warning like this. If there's anything we love about Taylor it's her good-girl, old school values that almost verge on naivety (though she has the savvy and sass to compensate for that too). So is it entirely fair of Ellen to make Taylor into a target like this, especially when the star suffers from a whole load of celebrity haters anyway? It was a bit mean, but in the end, we think this was more supportive than serious mickey-taking.
6 This moment
While Ellen's jokes are generally lighthearted, we were pretty shocked by this moment, when Ellen's mean streak definitely came out to play. Whilst playing Jenga with the star Alison Sweeney, Ellen shoved her guest straight into a giant, person-sized tower of Jenga. The host of The Biggest Loser went head-first into the loser's position on Ellen, in the shocking segment. It seemed like Ellen couldn't have had a more perfect moment for the prank if it had been planned, and we have to wonder. But whether or not the bit was a set-up, it seemed to teeter, Jenga-like on the verge of meanness. Alison seemed to take it really well, though, and laughed hysterically after toppling over amid a pile of Jenga bricks, while Ellen apologizes. And we have to admit, in our b****ier moments, we do enjoy the misfortune of others just a little bit. So, in the end, we were willing to indulge with Ellen in a bit of Sweeney schadenfreude.
5 THAT Nicki Minaj parody
Was the Nicki Minaj parody an example of a giggle turned sour? When Nicki landed a deal with ABC to produce a series about her early life as an immigrant from Trinidad in Queens, New York, Ellen announced she would show an "exclusive preview" of the series. Some critics have suggested that the parody, which showed Nicki's fictional family with absurdly oversized tushes fighting for sofa space. Was this an offensive joke that reinforced stereotypes or was it just amusing? We have to admit that Nicki's "Anaconda" video was pretty hilarious itself, which literally blew our minds when it came to topping the booty trend that has swept the world in recent years, reinforced by things like the rise of "twerking". Ellen has featured a slew of other Nicki Minaj parodies, but it seems that with this one, Ellen was referencing Nicki's own work and sense of fun, rather than reinforcing reductionist stereotypes… what do you think?
4 Super bass
https://youtu.be/vhZDo9bSqx8Now when it comes to Nicki Minaj on Ellen, we HAD to include these two little Minaj-a-holics from England, who basically broke the internet with their version of "Super Bass". The two girls performed the song with their heroine, and almost broke the internet with the hilarity that ensued. The two girls, dressed in pink princess outfits shriek insanely as Nicki comes onto the set. Sophia Grace is palpably thrilled to sing the hook of the song for Nicki and the stunned studio audience. In general, the girls' performance was just off the chain, and the super confident, super entertaining Sophia Grace and Rosie returned to the show several times, appearing with British comic Russell Brand and even performing "U Can't Touch This". We literally couldn't believe the unadulterated joy of these two little girls, and this was definitely one of the most unbelievable Ellen moments, that was all the more amazing because it definitely couldn't have been a set-up.
3 Ellen's Oscars Liza Minnelli roast
When Ellen was selected to host the Oscars it was a pretty important moment in her career, and all eyes were on her. Maybe that's why she caused a stir with her jibe at Liza Minnelli, whom she misrecognized as "the best Liza Minnelli impersonator I've ever seen". Some responded to the joke via Twitter, where they voiced their outrage, including accusations of transphobia, as the joke confused transvestism with drag. Although Liza didn't seem to be laughing when the camera showed her response to the quip, Liza later told journalists "I don't think she meant any harm at all. She's a wonderful lady." Having publicly struggled to come out of the closet herself, Ellen has vocally backed the LGBT community throughout her career, so it would seem very strange indeed for her to use the Oscars as a platform to voice her transphobia. Ellen has also recently told Howard Stern that she was surprised by Caitlyn Jenner's conservative perspective on gay marriage, saying "I want her to be happy, which is what I want for her for me".
2 Celebrity TMI
We've learned a lot about our favorite celebs through Ellen's games of "Never have I ever" on the show. Some would even say, too much. Like the time we learned that Martha Stewart has sent naughty text messages or when we learned Rihanna has sent one or two nudies in her time. Ellen may have gotten more than she bargained for when she invited Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Dax Shepard, and Kristen Bell to play the game at the same time. Maybe it was a sense of couple competition that pushed more confessions than normal, but both couples admitted to "grooming" their partners' body parts, as well as hooking up on set. Is this a fun game or are there things about these celebs' private lives that we are better off in the dark about? We feel like there have been a few touch and go moments with this game over the course of the series.
1 Ellen is pro kind-funny
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Rumors of the impending end of The Ellen Show have been rife, maybe as part of a weird parallel with Barack Obama's stepping down from office. Though these have not been confirmed, we had to review Ellen's most shocking and on-the-edge moments. And for the number of episodes and Ellen's cheeky presenting style, it is perhaps shocking that there HAVEN'T been more of these in the entire history of the show. In fact, Ellen has publically stated that despite the moments listed above, she "want[s] to be an example that you can be funny and make people laugh without hurting somebody else's feelings". Do you think she has succeeded in this ambition? Barack Obama seems to think so. In 2016 he awarded her a Medal of Freedom for her work in the entertainment business, announcing as the TV host visibly welled up:
"Ellen Degeneres has a way of making you laugh about something rather than at someone… It's easy to forget now when we've come so far, where now marriage is equal under the law, just how much courage was required for Ellen to come out on the most public of stages almost 20 years ago. How important it was not just to the LGBT community but for all of us, to see someone so full of kindness and light… remind us that we have more in common than we realize, push our country in the direction of justice. What an incredible burden that was to bear, to risk your career like that."
We have to concur, she does a pretty amazing job on the whole.