Ellen DeGeneres Faces Backlash After Defending Kevin Hart!

After defending fellow comedian Kevin Hart, comedian and host Ellen DeGeneres faces intense backlash.

At the beginning of December of last year, Kevin Hart announced he would host this year’s Oscar ceremony. But it didn’t take long for a Guardian reporter to comb through old tweets that resulted in controversy.

Hart would eventually step down from hosting duties after he was given an ultimatum by the Academy. However, a number of comedians came to the defense of Hart at the time and now Ellen DeGeneres is as well.

DeGeneres hosted Hart on her talk show and posted the interview to Twitter where she added, “I believe in forgiveness. I believe in second chances. And I believe in Kevin Hart.”

You can see the interview below:

Ellen would add that she is in Kevin Hart’s corner.

For defending Kevin Hart and believing in giving him a second chance, DeGeneres was quickly attacked. They claim that she allowed Hart, who is accused of homophobia, off the hook.

Here are some colorful takes on Hart’s interview on the Ellen Show:

Others dissected the entire controversy, arguing that Hart was homophobic for making jokes against gay people. That his words were “harsh” and they were “legitimately startled” by them. Some go so far to call his comedy sets anti gay for daring to crack a joke at their expense.

Others even went so far to question Ellen DeGeneres’ commitment to the gay community for allowing Hart to “absolve” himself. Saying that since her coming out in the mid 90s she’s been running away from her activism.

Others decided to just hate on Ellen or make it clear they no longer support her.

Ellen wasn’t the only comedain to go to bat for Hart. In the beginning of the controversy friend and co-star on a few projects, Nick Cannon came out to defend Hart against the Twitter mob. He called out the media and others for how they treated Hart compared to the likes of Amy Schumer and Sarah Silverman, calling it a “double standard.”

A Deeper Problem

While Hart’s case is front and center, it shines a light on a deeper problem in society and in comedy. There is a movement in certain sectors to create a “posthumous” version of comedy where the jokes aren’t about getting people to laugh any more, but are to engage people in social commentary.  In fact, Vulture has specifically highlighted this movement where they proclaim that “a special with long stretches without jokes or laughs is held up as the most relevant example of stand-up today,” referring to Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette special.

What do you think of the heat Ellen DeGeneres is taking for her position on Kevin Hart? What do you think of the overall shift in the comedy world? Are we entering something new? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

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