The Truth About Ellen DeGeneres And Jane Lynch's Friendship

Jane Lynch and Ellen DeGeneres are always fun to watch on-screen together. Their matching energies (and haircuts) have led lots of people to wonder over the years if they have as good a friendship in real life as they seem to when they're acting together. We were reminded of the goofball duo when DeGeneres tweeted a clip from Lynch's appearance on her show. "LOT COPS!" Ellen wrote on November 1, referencing the pair's previous on-air sketch where they drive around the set in uniforms.

DeGeneres (or her team) had apparently dug up a clip from the first time Lynch appeared on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in 2011. In the video, the comedians joke that even though everyone thinks they have, they had never actually worked together. So, to remedy this, they act out DeGeneres's "Lot Cops" pitch, which is mostly, indeed, just the two of them dressed as cops and driving around in a golf cart. Maybe it wouldn't work with anyone else, but because it's Lynch and DeGeneres, it's totally hilarious. Here's the truth about their real-life friendship.

Though it's clear that both Ellen DeGeneres and Jane Lynch admire each other and have a good professional relationship, it's not evident that they are personally very close. As Lynch once put it in an interview with Vanity Fair, "I think she's wonderful. I don't know her that well, personally. The power lesbians don't just get together for dinners. We don't do a potluck."

That's not to say that DeGeneres hasn't had a personal impact on Lynch's life. In fact, in interviews, she's credited DeGeneres' coming out with empowering her to come out as part of the LGBTQ+ community as well — and to play queer characters. "It made my being a gay person in Hollywood a no-brainer, not a problem at all," Lynch told The Daily Beast in 2019. "Because she basically took one for the team, if you will." Ha! 

All we can really say is that if DeGeneres and Lynch ever do decide to host such a power potluck, we will be ready with a casserole. There's clearly lots of respect here!

Jane Lynch may not be in the bestie category in this case, but we do know that Ellen Degeneres counts a ton of A-listers as members of her inner circle. Degeneres' famous pals include President George W. Bush — who she was famously photographed with at a football game — to "Friends" friend Jennifer Anniston, per an Us Weekly rundown of Degeneres' besties. And since Lynch starred in two episodes of "Arrested Development" with Degeneres' wife Portia de Rossi, there's clearly some overlap here.

Meanwhile, Lynch apparently rolls with a crowd that could be considered both more and less exclusive, depending on how you look at it. Scrolling through the "Glee" star's Instagram page, it's clear that she's most close to her family, and often posts pictures of her sister, aunt, and niece. Sure, they may not be on the Met Gala invite list, but they're certainly A-List in Lynch's life.