Kevin Hart On Defending Ellen DeGeneres And Nick Cannon: 'I Know How Lonely It Gets'

Kevin Hart has defended his decision to show support for Ellen DeGeneres and Nick Cannon when they recently came under fire for different controversies.

Hart said he will always stand up for people whom he considers “real” friends, describing DeGeneres and Cannon as two of the most “amazing” people he knows.

“When it comes to Nick, and it comes Ellen, I know who they are, and I know who they’ve been for the years that I’ve been around them, and I can only speak to that,” Hart told Deadline. “Those are two of the most amazing people that I know.”

The comedian, however, clarified that his decision to support them does not take away from what people say the two have done.

“All I can say is my experiences with those people,” he continued. “That’s not to take away from what other people are saying.”

On Aug. 4, Hart showed he was on DeGeneres' side by uploading a photo of him with the host on Instagram and writing that ”this hate [expletive] has to stop.”

This came after DeGeneres was criticized for her alleged cold and rude behavior and her poor treatment of staff. Numerous crew members also described a “toxic” workplace culture on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” with racial discrimination and sexual misconduct among the allegations made.

Hart also showed Cannon support via Instagram after the latter came under fire for “hateful speech and antisemitism.” During a June episode of his podcast, Cannon said Black people are the “true Hebrews” and promoted anti-Semitic conspiracy theories involving the Rothschild family.

Justifying his decision to stand by DeGeneres and Cannon, Hart said that he knows how they are feeling based on his own experience with ”cancel culture.” The actor previously triggered controversy when his homophobic tweets resurfaced, causing him to lose his 2019 Oscars hosting gig.

“In times like this, I know also how dark it gets. I know how lonely it gets, because I know that these are times when people just turn their back on you,” Hart said. “So for the ones that you love, that are close to your heart, you just want them to have some support, when it seems that there is none out there, and that’s just who I am as a person.”

DeGeneres recently apologized to her crew in a videoconference call with more than 220 show staffers on Monday. The talk show host said she was trying to learn from her mistakes, a source who was on the call told People.

“I’m a multi-layered person, and I try to be the best person I can be and I try to learn from my mistakes,” DeGeneres said, according to the unnamed staffer.

“I’m hearing that some people felt that I wasn’t kind or too short with them, or too impatient,” she added. “I apologize to anybody if I’ve hurt your feelings in any way.”

On Tuesday, Warner Bros announced that three top producers — Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman and Jonathan Norman — have been let go from the show.

Cannon also apologized last month for the controversial remarks he made on his podcast, “Cannon’s Class.” During the episode, he had interviewed rapper Professor Griff, who was briefly kicked out of Public Enemy in 1989 over anti-Semitic comments.

“First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin,” Cannon wrote in a tweet.

He added, “They reinforced the worst stereotypes of a proud and magnificent people and I feel ashamed of the uninformed and naïve place that these words came from. The video of this interview has since been removed.”