Ellen DeGeneres Faces Backlash After Urging Kevin Hart To Reconsider Decision To Not Host Oscars

Kevin Hart and Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen Degeneres feels so strongly that comedian Kevin Hart should reverse his decision and host the upcoming Academy Awards, she interviewed him for her show about it.

The segment was set to air Monday, but she felt SO emphatic about the issue she moved the interview to air today.

In December, Hart stepped down as host of the Oscars after a social media uproar over past homophobic tweets.

I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscar's....this is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.

— Kevin Hart (@KevinHart4real) December 7, 2018

I'm sorry that I hurt people.. I am evolving and want to continue to do so. My goal is to bring people together not tear us apart. Much love & appreciation to the Academy. I hope we can meet again.

— Kevin Hart (@KevinHart4real) December 7, 2018

One tweet from 2010 said a user's profile picture looked "like a gay billboard for AIDS." Another tweet, from 2012, read: "Yo if my son comes home & try's 2 play with my daughters doll house I'm going 2 break it over his head & say n my voice 'stop that's gay.'"

During today's chat, Ellen basically lets Hart have the floor to explain what hosting the Oscars meant to him, how he viewed the shit storm over his homophobic tweets involved statements from a decade ago and how he's spent ten years moving on from that 'immature' comedian into becoming a grown, cultured man.

DeGeneres urged Hart to reconsider his decision on stepping down as Academy Awards host.

“As a gay person. I am sensitive to all of that. You’ve already expressed that it’s not being educated on the subject, not realizing how dangerous those words are, not realizing how many kids are killed for being gay or beaten up every day,” DeGeneres told Hart.

In fact, DeGeneres shares that she actually called the Academy on Hart's behalf.

“I called them, I said ‘Kevin’s on. I have no idea if he wants to come back and host. What are your thoughts?’ And they were like, ‘oh my God, we want him to host. We feel like maybe he was misunderstood or it was handled wrong or we said the wrong thing. But we want him to host.Wwhatever we can do we would be thrilled and he should host the Oscars'”

Hart now says he'll reconsider his decision.

The 2019 Academy Awards airs February 24.

Some LGBTQ activists are not having Ellen giving Hart a platform and her support here.

I feel like if you’re not homophobic anymore, you shouldn’t mind apologizing for your past homophobia again and again and again. I don’t want to hear a hostile retelling of how we didn’t hear your meager apology the first time.

— Louis Virtel (@louisvirtel) January 4, 2019

Ellen giving homophobes the ability to say “but Ellen said it’s okay” is a massive fucking betrayal.

I don’t care how many sitcoms you lost in the 90s.

— Happy Houlidays (@RyanHoulihan) January 4, 2019

The only thing @KevinHart4real proved by going on Ellen was that he is a terrible actor with zero genuine remorse who didn’t have the decency to address his ignorance. No, they weren’t “haters” who came after you. It was the LGBTQI+ community because we’re sick to shit of it.

— Harry Cook (@HarryCook) January 4, 2019

I expected Ellen to actually ask Kevin Hart some sort of challenging question. Anything, really. But instead, it was just one long monologue from Kevin interspersed with Ellen’s approval. That interview made me miss the previous talk show hosts that asked tough questions.

— deray (@deray) January 4, 2019