Rosie O’Donnell still has some words about the comedic friendship that once was.
It’s been more than 20 years since Ellen DeGeneres made certain comments about O’Donnell, 63, on Larry King Live, causing a tragic fallout that’s still making headlines today.
On a new podcast appearance, the Now and Then actress opened up about her reaction to DeGeneres’ 2004 live interview where she said she was no longer friends with O’Donnell.
On the Sept. 7 episode of Mamamia’s No Filter podcast, O’Donnell said the aftermath of it all was “one of the most painful things that ever happened to me, in show business, in my life.”
When DeGeneres, 67, came out as gay on her sitcom in 1997, O’Donnell stood by her side, as Mamamia reported. But in 2004, everything changed when DeGeneres went on Larry King Live — which O’Donnell says she was watching in bed with her ex-wife Kelli Carpenter at the time.
“I couldn’t believe it… I have photos of her holding my newborn babies. I knew her for 30 years,” O’Donnell said in her recent podcast appearance. “She was, all of a sudden, in the position I was in… and instead of deciding to stand next to me and hold my hand, which is what I did to her, she did the opposite.”
As People reported, O’Donnell told the same story during a 2022 appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. The following year, O’Donnell told The Hollywood Reporter that DeGeneres had reached out to her to apologize.
Besides moving to Ireland earlier this year — following DeGeneres’ own move out of the U.S. last year — O’Donnell has also been in the spotlight this summer as an outspoken supporter of the Menendez brothers. After one of the SoCal-based prisoners was denied parole last month, the former talk-show host took to Instagram to continue her “Free the Menendez brothers” messaging.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Sep 9, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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