Steve Harvey continues to deal with the fallout from the leaked memo to his staff.
A production source tells ET that the host was affected by the last day of production, as the Steve Harvey Show prepares to move operations to Los Angeles.
“He was emotional, but still ‘Steve’ and made everyone laugh too,” the source says. “The majority of the staff have no bad feelings about Steve. People are sad that they are looking for jobs, but understand things change.”
Regarding the letter — where Harvey instructs his staff to “not approach” him while he’s in his dressing room, makeup, or the hallways — the source says that “this whole story has been overblown,” adding, “[It] hasn’t been a bad season and people weren’t angry in the office. If morale is bad, it’s because people will be out of a job, not because Steve treated them badly.”
Meanwhile, Harvey is standing by the memo. A second source tells ET, “He was tearful in the last production meeting, but not apologetic.”
According to a third source, who is close to the show’s production staff, “Steve said his goodbyes during the day. He did not attend the [wrap] party, which took place on a boat.”
WATCH: Steve Harvey Tells Staff Not to ‘Ambush’ Him in the Hallways in Leaked Memo
Harvey clarified his memo on Thursday during a phone call with ET’s Kevin Frazier, saying, “Everybody wants the freedom to be able to move around.”
“I’ve always had a policy where, you know, you can come and talk to me — so many people are great around here, but some of them just started taking advantage of it,” he explained. “I’m in the hallway, I’m getting ambushed by people with friends that come to the show and having me sign this and do this. I just said, ‘Wait a minute.’ And in hindsight, I probably should’ve handled it a little bit differently.”
“I just didn’t want to be in this prison anymore where I had to be in this little room, scared to go out and take a breath of fresh air without somebody approaching me, so I wrote the letter,” he added. “I don’t apologize about the letter, but it’s kind of crazy what people who took this thing and ran, man. I appreciate you asking me.”
Source: ET
