Ellen DeGeneres faces criticism over donation to late producer Matt Wright as family shares heartbreaking new update

See more of our coverage in your search results. Ellen DeGeneres faced criticism from fans for donating only $5,000 to her late producer Matthew Wright’s GoFundMe following his death. “Big spender. She was crying her eyes out so much why didn’t she just pay the entire 50k,” said one user. “Wow, 0.001% of her net worth! How generous!” added another. “5k from an almost billionaire…….how generous…….,” tweeted a third person. Fans criticized Ellen DeGeneres, pictured in 2023, for her donation to her late producer’s GoFundMe. BACKGRID The former talk show host donated $5,000 to Matthew Wright’s GoFundMe. GoFundMe “When you’re worth hundreds of millions of dollars, donating only $5,000 to help the family after a death of a longtime coworker comes off as cruel. Cruel, but not surprising when it’s her 🙄,” wrote a fourth netizen. A fan labeled DeGeneres as “cheap,” while another said the former talk show host was a “joke and evil.” Other fans came to the “Finding Nemo” voice actor’s defense, saying the $5,000 donation was “still a lot of money.” Matt Wright appears alongside Ellen DeGeneres on “The Ellen Show.” He died suddenly while working remotely in Los Angeles. matt wright/ instagram Wright, who also produced the “Jennifer Hudson Show,” was remembered by DeGeneres as an “amazing guy” who made her laugh. matt wright/ instagram Want more celebrity and pop culture news? Start your day with Page Six Daily. Thanks for signing up! “She literally covered 1/10th of the cost out of pocket for someone who isn’t related to her and not her responsibility to pay for. Like, I don’t like Ellen either, but that’s actually a pretty stand-up amount to donate,” the X user added. Page Six has reached out to DeGeneres’ rep for comment but did not immediately hear back. DeGeneres broke down in tears as she took to social media to pay tribute to Wright, who worked as a producer on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and the “Jennifer Hudson Show.” DeGeneres broke down in tears in an Instagram video as she paid tribute to her former producer following his sudden passing. Instagram/ellendegeneres Matthew Wright, producer for the “Ellen DeGeneres Show.” GoFundMe “God, he was an amazing guy,” the comedian reflected in an Instagram video. “He made me laugh, he would surprise me with things he did all the time.” “He was smart, he was kind … I mean, everyone loved him,” she continued. “I loved him. And it’s just shocking, it’s shocking.” Wright passed away last Friday while he was working remotely in Los Angeles. He was 52. Wright’s family said he “died suddenly but peacefully in his sleep” on Oct. 30. He was 52. Instagram/andylassner Wright worked on DeGeneres’ talk show for 16 years. Ellen In a heartbreaking new update, Wright’s family said he “died suddenly but peacefully in his sleep.” “The light of every room, Matt curated a beautiful life, menu by menu, sunset by sunset, person by person,” the GoFundMe, which was created to assist Wright’s family in getting his body to New York from California, read. “He will be remembered for being everything everyone loved – sweetly stubborn and stubbornly sweet, persistently curious and curiously persistent, profoundly loving and lovingly profound,” it added. Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space. In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will/might be rejected if it contains: Spam Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language and threats of any kind Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice: Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected Racist, sexist, or homophobic comments Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk So, how can you be a power user? Stay on topic and share your passion. Feel free to elaborate to get your point across. 'Like' or 'Dislike' when you are filled with emotions! Protect your community. Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules. Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!