It’s a blood bath at the Ellen DeGeneres talk show, and her Game of Games show.
Warner Telepictures has fired three top producers including Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman and co-executive producer Jonathan Norman. Variety reported the news.
Staying are Mary Connelly, Andy Lassner and Derek Westervelt. Lassner is the producer you see locked out of Ellen’s house during the last several months, peering in the window of her patio.
As everyone knows, “The Ellen Show” has been the subject of numerous exposes and investigations regarding the backstage behavior of producers.
And as the stories have built up, and “Ellen” has gone into reruns, the ratings have been in a free fall. The latest numbers indicate the show pulling just 1 million viewers average a day, its second week in a row at an all time low. But in the key demo, the show dropped from 0.5 to 0.4, tying with the little known “Steve Wilkos Show.” It’s a 20% drop and bodes poorly for the fall season, which is now delayed until September 14th.
The three fired producers are also off Ellen’s “Game of Game Show,” which has also lost steam this summer in reruns.
That September 14th return show is going to need an Oscar level performance by DeGeneres, whose brand is severely damaged from all the fall out this summer. Even celebrity guests attacked the show, including Brad Garrett and Lea Thompson.
If the ratings are not recoverable for “Ellen,” look for Telepictures to announce a series finale for May 2020.
