Ellen DeGeneres Is ‘Ready to Pull the Trigger’ on a Move to Africa: She’s ‘Loved by the Locals’

Ellen DeGeneres is reeling from the humiliating failure of her comedy tour — she abruptly canceled a few shows just one month after kicking off Ellen’s Last Stand…Up Live — and now sources exclusively tell In Touch she is giving serious thought to fleeing Hollywood.

The 66-year-old comedian could set up home in Africa, where she and wife Portia de Rossi already have roots as they tirelessly campaign for wildlife, specifically gorillas.

“At this point it’s crystal clear even to Ellen that she’s facing an uphill battle to win back a fraction of the fan base she had years ago,” says an insider, referring to the workplace scandal the former TV host faced in July 2020, when multiple ex The Ellen DeGeneres Show employees accused her of creating a “toxic” on-set atmosphere. (Ellen eventually issued an apology during the show’s season 18 opening in September 2020.)

According to the source, the TV personality’s “disastrous comedy experience proves” that she still hasn’t fully recovered from the fallout.

“She came very close to relocating after the bullying scandal broke but ultimately decided the good life in Montecito, [California], was too difficult to give up, even temporarily,” the insider reveals. “So, Plan B now comes into the equation, and she’s ready to pull the trigger.”

In 2022, The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund opened near Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, home to the mountain gorillas, and advances the work being done to save the apes from extinction.

The source says that Ellen’s wife, 51, would even be on board with the potential move.

“Portia is equally passionate about the work they do over in Rwanda and other parts of Africa,” says the insider. “They live like royalty over there, and crucially they’re lauded and loved by the locals who appreciate all the funding and passion they’ve provided for the endangered apes.”

Regardless, the couple seems ready for a change. “Ellen’s desperate for salvation and appreciation,” says the source. “It’s just a crying shame to her that she needs to go as far as Africa to get it!”

Produced by Live Nation, Ellen’s Last Stand…Up Live is billed as Ellen’s “farewell tour,” and it kicked off in June in San Diego, California. According to producers, she is “poised to reintroduce her trademark wit and laughter-inducing anecdotes back to the spotlight.”

Her August 16 and 17 shows in Minneapolis are set to be taped and are reportedly her “last.”

Ellen returned to the comedy circuit after announcing the decision to end her long-running talk show following 19 seasons on air in May 2021. During a Los Angeles tour stop in April, the Ellen Show alum joked about getting “kicked out of show business” for “being mean.”

“The hate went on for a long time and I would try to avoid looking at the news. The ‘be kind’ girl wasn’t kind. That was the headline,” she said on stage. “I’m making jokes about what happened to me, but it was devastating. It took a long time for me to want to do anything again.”