Ellen DeGeneres Compares Coronavirus Quarantine To ‘Being In Jail’ & People Are PISSED!

C.A.

It’s understandable that some are frustrated with the current social distancing measures, but maybe one of the richest personalities in Hollywood should’ve sat this particular pity party out…

Fans are pissed at Ellen DeGeneres after she made a bad joke about the coronavirus lockdown on Monday as she streamed the first episode of her titular talk show from home — we’re talking about her sprawling $27 million mansion in Montecito, California, just so we’re clear!

Related: Tracy Morgan Delivers A Bizarre Coronavirus Quarantine Interview From Home

The 62-year-old kicked off her segment on a high note, thanking first responders, healthcare professionals, and essential workers for their heroic fight on the frontlines against COVID-19. Then she explained why the time was right to start working from home:

“I wanted to start doing my new show as soon as possible because it’s really for people who are stuck at home, and especially my staff and crew. I love them, I miss them, and the best thing I can do to support them is to keep the show on the air.”

Nice! But things took a turn for the worse when DeGeneres tried to land a ridiculous one-liner where she compared the quarantine to being incarcerated:

“One thing that I’ve learned from being in quarantine is that this is like being in jail. It’s mostly because I’ve been wearing the same clothes for 10 days and everyone in here is gay.”

Yeah… she really went there. As we mentioned earlier, viewers immediately slammed the comedian for comparing her lavish lifestyle to a prison sentence! We mean, Ellen is streaming her show to millions of people across the world, in SWEATPANTS, from an estate that’s worth enough to fund a small city.

The tone-deaf comment also comes at a time when many people, including the brave men and women she thanked a few moments prior, don’t have the privilege to stay home and safely self-isolate amid the global pandemic. Twitter users did not hold back their disapproval and shared some truly savage responses to Ellen’s joke:

This next tweet, which racked up over 20,000 likes and several reshares, really hit the nail on the head about why DeGeneres’ quip was so problematic:

Another fan reminded Portia de Rossi‘s wife that the prison system isn’t worth a punchline:

And these users expertly pointed out how prisons are struggling to safely care for inmates, who are being disproportionately exposed to COVID-19 in tightly crowded cells:

So far, DeGeneres hasn’t commented on the backlash or issued an apology — although, the consensus is pretty clear that she truly missed the mark with whatever version of comedy she was trying to pull off. Remember when Vanessa Hudgens and Evangeline Lilly shared their tasteless remarks about the coronavirus?? We hope other celebs learn from these horrible examples.

If you’re interested, check out the controversial segment:

And let us know if it bothered you as much as it bothered the rest of us in the comments (below)!

[Image via Ellen DeGeneres/YouTube]

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