Netflix persuades Ellen DeGeneres to come back to stand-up

By Esther Zuckerman | May 24, 2017 | 5:50pm

Aux Features Comedy

It’s no secret that Netflix has lured stand-up comedians to its platform with—let’s be frank here—tons of money and the promise of specials. Now it’s hooked Ellen DeGeneres, who’s been out of the stand-up game for quite some time as in favor of her gig promoting viral stars, a.k.a. her daytime talk show. But, if some coy tweets are to be believed, that’s about to change. Earlier today, Netflix posted: “Looks like it’s been 15 years since you did a stand-up special, @TheEllenShow. How about one for Netflix?” To which DeGeneres responded:

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Deadline notes that “word is that the deal is likely in the range of the blockbuster pacts Netflix recently signed with other comedy stars making stand-up special returns after a long break.” (For example, Chris Rock got $40 million for two specials.) DeGeneres has been in host mode for quite a while now, so it will be interesting to see what she does with just a stage, a mic, and her powers of observation.