A former Channel Nine executive has revealed what he thinks will happen to The Ellen DeGeneres Show, after it was abruptly pulled from Nine’s daytime schedule.
Rob McKnight, who has worked for all the major Australian networks and now runs the TV Blackbox website, said on Tuesday that while Ellen’s brand is certainly ‘in trouble’, he’s confident she can bounce back.
He argued that many of Ellen’s devoted fans around the world are willing to turn a blind eye to her failures as a manager, adding: ‘The feedback quite clearly shows people don’t want to know the truth about her.’
His analysis comes after Channel Nine chose to stop airing the U.S. talk show this week pending an internal investigation by WarnerMedia into accusations of racism, bullying and sexual harassment behind the scenes.
The inside story of Nine’s deal with Ellen DeGeneres: A TV executive has revealed the future of the talk show in Australia, after it was pulled from the schedule amid ‘bullying’ accusations
‘I have a feeling Ellen will come back on in the U.S. and she’s not going to skip a beat,’ McKnight said.
‘Those ratings are still going to be there, because when we talked about this issue on the Ben, Rob and Robbo Show, our feedback quite clearly shows people don’t want to know the truth about her.’
McKnight added that discussions are still ongoing between Nine and Warner Bros. regarding the new season, despite the show being pulled from Nine’s schedule for the time being.
From mean to comeback queen? Rob McKnight, who has worked for all the major Australian networks and now runs the TV Blackbox website, said on Tuesday that while Ellen’s brand is certainly ‘in trouble’, he thinks she can bounce back
His view: ‘I have a feeling Ellen will come back on in the U.S. and she’s not going to skip a beat,’ McKnight (pictured) said. ‘Those ratings are still going to be there, because… our feedback quite clearly shows people don’t want to know the truth about her’
McKnight and his co-hosts on the TV Blackbox podcast also suggested that cutting The Ellen DeGeneres Show from the midday time slot was simply a ‘cost issue’.
‘Anything out of prime time… is not a priority,’ McKnight said.
Channel Nine stopped airing The Ellen DeGeneres show effective as of Monday.
The network is instead airing reruns of Desperate Housewives – which previously screened on Seven – during Ellen’s usual time slot between 12pm and 1pm.
Cancelled: McKnight’s analysis comes after Channel Nine chose to stop airing the U.S. talk show this week pending an internal investigation by WarnerMedia into accusations of racism, bullying and sexual harassment behind the scenes
‘We are resting Ellen repeats on Nine and have replaced with Desperate Housewives,’ a Nine spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.
While The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been pulled from Nine’s schedule for the foreseeable future, repeats will continue to air on multichannel 9Gem.
Discussions between Nine and Warner Bros. regarding broadcast rights for the upcoming season, which begins next month, are said to be ‘ongoing’.
The show, which has aired on Nine since 2013, is currently the subject of an internal investigation by WarnerMedia, after multiple staffers alleged that a culture of bullying, intimidation and harassment was rampant behind the scenes.
Making headlines: The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which has aired on Nine since 2013, is currently the subject of an internal investigation by WarnerMedia, after multiple staffers alleged that bullying, racism and sexual harassment were rampant behind the scenes
Warner Bros. Television announced last Monday that three senior producers had been fired from Ellen’s show: Ed Glavin, one of the executive producers; Jonathan Norman, a co-executive producer; and Kevin Leman, the show’s head writer.
They were sacked following an internal investigation into multiple allegations of a ‘toxic’ work culture behind the scenes of the popular daytime talk show.
Employees described a working environment rife with ‘racism, fear and intimidation’.
Earlier this month, a Nine representative confirmed the network had chosen not to air new episodes from the current season, which Ellen is recording in self-isolation from her $27million mansion in California, because they were best-of episodes.
Re-runs: The network has dropped Ellen for now and is instead airing reruns of Desperate Housewives weekdays from 12pm to 1pm. Pictured: Desperate Housewives stars (L-R) Teri Hatcher, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria and Felicity Huffman
‘In the end, they were running best-of iso compiles which we weren’t contracted to acquire,’ the spokesperson said.
Instead, Nine opted to screen reruns of The Ellen DeGeneres Show from before the coronavirus pandemic forced production to move from the studio to Ellen’s home.
However, these repeats have now stopped airing altogether, with soap opera Desperate Housewives – starring Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman and Eva Longoria – filling the midday time slot instead.
Gone: Warner Bros. Television announced last Monday that three senior producers had been fired from Ellen’s show: Ed Glavin, one of the executive producers; Jonathan Norman, a co-executive producer; and Kevin Leman, the show’s head writer
Nine had previously stopped airing Ellen’s self-isolation broadcasts back in April, and replaced them with the American sitcom Kevin Can Wait.
But the network resumed airing repeats of The Ellen DeGeneres Show a week later.
It remains to be seen if Nine relents once again by pulling Desperate Housewives from the schedule and reinstating Ellen.
As well as 9Gem, the show will continue to screen locally on FOX Arena.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.