A combo picture of Kevin Hart (left) and Ellen DeGeneres.

Kevin Hart has explained his decision to publicly voice his support for Ellen DeGeneres.

The TV host has made headlines in recent weeks after claims by numerous staff at The Ellen DeGeneres Show that racism, bullying and sexual harassment were rife behind the scenes.

Comedian Hart defended his friend DeGeneres earlier this month, calling her “one of the dopest people on the f***ing planet”. He also criticised the internet for becoming “a crazy world of negativity”, adding: “We are falling in love with people’s downfall. It’s honestly sad... When did we get here?”

Elaborating on why he chose to stand up for DeGeneres, Hart told Deadline in a new interview: “I don’t lose sight of the definition of friendship... There’s a lot of relationships that are fake, and there’s some that are real. In my case, the ones that are real are the ones that I’m always going to be adamant about speaking on behalf of.”

 Eniko Parrish, actor Kevin Hart, TV personality Ellen DeGeneres, and actress Portia de Rossi attend the People's Choice Awards 2017.

He said he did not want to “take away from” the accusations against his friend, but added: “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.

“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.”

In December 2018, Hart was forced to step down as Oscars host after homophobic tweets from his past were resurfaced and he initially refused to apologise.