--- description: She said she doesn't like crushing people's dreams title: Ellen DeGeneres: Judging 'American Idol' Was 'Worst Decision' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt32bdc401b29feedb/698862b4cd1bbaa4166fd137/ellen-degeneres.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Ellen DeGeneres: Judging _American Idol_ Was 'One of the Worst Decisions I've Made'  by [Charlotte Alter](/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Updated: Dec 14, 2023 2:25 AM CUTPublished: Sep 9, 2015 12:57 PM CUT  Ellen DeGeneres in Los Angeles on Jan. 7, 2015. Ellen DeGeneres in Los Angeles on Jan. 7, 2015.C Flanigan—Getty Images  by [Charlotte Alter](/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Updated: Dec 14, 2023 2:25 AM CUTPublished: Sep 9, 2015 12:57 PM CUT Ellen DeGeneres doesn’t miss her days as a judge on _American Idol_ one bit. She told Howard Stern Tuesday that being a judge on Season 10 was “one of the worst decisions I’ve made,” and that she couldn’t stand crushing so many people’s dreams. “As a fan of the shows, it doesn’t matter that I sing or I know anything about pitch … I’m like everybody else at home, so I thought I’m gonna represent those people at home that have opinions,” she said, according to [The Wrap.](https://www.thewrap.com/ellen-degeneres-trashes-her-stint-as-american-idol-judge-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/ "undefined") “But then I just thought, like Howard says, I can’t break this person’s heart. Let somebody else do that.” DeGeneres also opened up about her interview with Caitlyn Jenner, which aired Tuesday, during which she asked Jenner about her evolving views on gay marriage. Jenner, who has said she is politically conservative, has opposed gay marriage in the past. “I said, ‘You’re wanting people to understand and accept you — this is like, really confusing to people. And you still have a judgement about gay people and marriage,'”DeGeneres told Stern. “She goes, ‘Well if the word marriage is that important.’ It is. That’s the word.” Jenner said on the show that she had “really changed thinking here to: ‘I don’t ever want to stand in front of anybody’s happiness.'” \[h/t [The Wrap](https://www.thewrap.com/ellen-degeneres-trashes-her-stint-as-american-idol-judge-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/ "undefined")\] ### See Photos of Celebrities When They Were Kids  Scarlett Johansson Getty Images; AP  Leonardo DiCaprio Getty Images (2)  Christian Bale Getty Images (2)  Emma Watson Getty Images (2)  Daniel Radcliffe Getty Images (2)  Rupert Grint Getty Images (2)  Kristen Stewart Getty Images (2)  Neil Patrick Harris Getty Images (2)  Kirsten Dunst Getty Images (2)  Dakota Fanning Getty Images (2)  Elijah Wood Getty Images (2)  Shia LaBeouf Getty Images (2)  Sean Astin Getty Images (2)  Drew Barrymore Getty Images (2)  Christina Ricci Getty Images (2)  Shailene Woodley Getty Images (2)  Wil Wheaton Getty Images (2)  Zac Efron Getty Images (2)  Michelle Trachtenberg Getty Images (2)  Taylor Lautner Getty Images (2)  Haley Joel Osment Getty Images (2) Ellen DeGeneres to Howard Stern: 'American Idol' Was Tough ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/"},"headline":"Ellen DeGeneres: Judging American Idol Was 'One of the Worst Decisions I've Made'","datePublished":"2015-09-09T12:57:38.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-14T02:25:18.000Z","description":"She said she doesn't like crushing people's dreams","url":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/","keywords":["celebrities","Newsfeed","American Idol","Ellen Degeneres"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt32bdc401b29feedb/698862b4cd1bbaa4166fd137/ellen-degeneres.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Charlotte Alter","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/charlotte-alter/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt32bdc401b29feedb/698862b4cd1bbaa4166fd137/ellen-degeneres.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2015 People's Choice Awards - Arrivals","caption":"2015 People's Choice Awards - Arrivals","creditText":"C Flanigan—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/","name":"Ellen DeGeneres: Judging American Idol Was 'One of the Worst Decisions I've Made'"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"5 Reasons TV's Top Shows Are So Addictive","description":"Here's a look at how our favorite TV shows—from \"Game of Thrones\" to \"Scandal\" and \"Breaking Bad\"—keep us coming back for more.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/2RqNgPrk/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-01-16T20:47:22.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/2RqNgPrk.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/","duration":"PT2M16S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4026209/ellen-degeneres-judging-american-idol-was-one-of-the-worst-decisions-ive-made/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```