D’you think this will really be Ellen DeGeneres’ final stand-up special? DeGeneres has said so in no uncertain terms; she even named the tour from whence this material sprung “Ellen’s Last Stand…Up Tour.” And on that tour, she vowed that after Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval, which premieres on Netflix on September 24, we’d never see her again. That imbues this special with an extra level of excitement and intrigue, given that it’s a goodbye to one of the most successful and visible comedians of a generation. Then again, Hollywood types rarely ever stick to their retirements, so it’s hard to imagine this will really be the last we see of her.  

Netflix is doing its best to make us believe the hype by reiterating that this is “The final comedy special of her historic career,” in which “Ellen gets personal and reveals what she’s been doing since being ‘kicked out of show business.’ From the mundane world of raising chickens and parallel parking to the harsh reality of becoming a brand name celebrity, she goes deep into her stand-up roots and brings the laughs through life’s most real and absurd realities.”

In the trailer, at least, DeGeneres isn’t leaning too heavily on saying goodbye or making her final bow overly nostalgic. The material is focused a lot on her so-called cancellation, which probably contributed to her so-called retirement. In fairness to her, she’s grappling with an industry that, from her perspective, has turned its back on her multiple times.  “I didn’t go into this business for money. It was about healing my childhood wounds,” she reflects in the trailer. “I thought, if I could make people happy, then they’ll like me, and if they like me, I’ll feel good about myself. And all I can say about that is, thank God for the money.”