Ellen DeGeneres has sparked fierce backlash after a particularly tone deaf joke during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
WATCH: Ellen DeGeneres makes tasteless quarantine-jail joke in now deleted video
The so-called funny woman was slammed online after she compared self-isolation in her multi-million dollar LA mansion to “being in jail”.
The 62-year-old – who has been forced to halt production on her studio-based show in order to comply with COVID-19 safety measures – made the ill-timed joke whilst broadcasting her show from home.
“One thing that I’ve learned from being in quarantine is that people – this is like being in jail, is what it is,” she said. “It’s mostly because I’ve been wearing the same clothes for 10 days and everyone in here is gay.”
The video – which has now been listed as “unavailable” on YouTube – was immediately slammed by fans.
“Sitting inside her fifteen million dollar mansion complaining and comparing it to a prison, very tone deaf ellen,” one viewer commented on YouTube.
“Except that people in jail can’t practice social distancing, don’t have enough water or toilet paper and are going to die at exceptional rates from Covid-19. Except for that, Ellen, your quarantine experience is just like being in jail,” another person tweeted.
The backlash is another bitter blow for the US talk show host, who last month was outed on Twitter by a former staffer as “the meanest person alive”.
The viral movement started after comedian Kevin T Porter asked users who had experience dealing with Ellen to come forward and share their story.
Within minutes, the post was flooded with responses from food servers and TV workers wanting to reveal the shocking treatment they’d experienced at the hands of the TV giant.
Amongst them were tales of how she had demanded staff not look or speak to her, forced staff to chew gum before coming near her and once got a waitress fired because her nail polish was chipped.
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