Rosie O’Donnell is recalling what led to the current strained relationship between her and Ellen DeGeneres.
During an appearance on the “No Filter” podcast hosted by Kate Langbroek, O’Donnell opened up about why the two comics and former talk show hosts had a falling out over 20 years ago. In the episode, which was released Sept. 8, Langbroek asked O’Donnell about the major cultural moment in 1997 when DeGeneres, and her character, came out during “The Puppy Episode” of her sitcom “Ellen.”
O’Donnell shared that it felt “very threatening” watching that episode as a person who hadn’t publicly confirmed their sexuality, before touching on her past friendship with DeGeneres.
“Everyone then wanted to know, ‘Well, are you gay?’” she said. At the time of “Ellen”’s peak, O’Donnell was also hosting her popular “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” daytime television show. Despite feeling threatened, she said she wanted DeGeneres to come on her show and talk about the groundbreaking sitcom.
“She came on my show, and I felt strongly that I didn’t want to leave her out there alone,” O’Donnell explained. “That I could not (as a) gay person act as though I was not the same as her.”
She said the two chatted about the sit-down backstage before the interview began. DeGeneres joked to O’Donnell that her “Ellen” character was going to “become Lebanese.” During the interview, after DeGeneres made the quip, O’Donnell responded by saying she could also be “Lebanese” because she was a fan of Casey Kasem.
“Everyone who was gay at home got it. Because I wouldn’t leave her out there alone. I couldn’t do it. So we had this, you know, really sort of decoded, coded, interaction that anyone who was gay knew. But, you know, the public didn’t really pick up on it,” O’Donnell said.
She continued, “It just felt like, ‘Oh, this could really threaten me.’ But still, my internal clock wouldn’t allow me to distance myself from her. I had to stand by her and hold her hand, and that’s what I chose to do. Then, you know, it’s funny, because she never really, I didn’t think, appreciated that moment.”
Portia de Rossi, Ellen DeGeneres and Rosie O’Donnell backstage at the 33rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards in 2006.Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic
O’Donnell then shared the moment their friendship unraveled.
She remembered watching Larry King interview DeGeneres one night with her ex-wife Kelli Carpenter by her side. Larry asked DeGeneres about the ending of “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” which aired its final episode in 2002. According to O’Donnell, she was offered to return to host the talk show, but she walked away because she wanted to focus on her family.
“He asked her, ‘Whatever happened to Rosie O’Donnell? Her show went down the tubes,’” O’Donnell said while mimicking the late broadcaster’s voice. “And Ellen said, ‘I don’t know Rosie. We’re not friends.’”
O’Donnell added, “That was like one of the most painful things that ever happened to me in show business in my life.”
She said she was stunned by DeGeneres’ reply given that the two had known each other for decades.
“I have photos of her holding my newborn babies. I knew her for 30 years,” she shared. O’Donnell said she was so upset at the time that she made t-shirts for her talk show staff that included the quote.
“It was very painful and, you know, we’ve never sort of gotten over it,” she told Langbroek.
TODAY.com has reached out to DeGeneres for a comment.
O’Donnell claimed DeGeneres never addressed the moment with her. She also pointed out that when “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” launched in 2003 it included some of the same production team members from “The Rosie O’Donnell Show.” But she said she didn’t “blame” DeGeneres for hiring the same people.
“But I did think that she was all of a sudden in the position I was in, where she was starting a show and wanted it to be successful and get the money and the accolades that came with it,” O’Donnell explained. “And instead of deciding to stand next to me and hold my hand, which is what I did to her, she did the opposite. I couldn’t believe it.”
She emphasized repeatedly that she and DeGeneres are not similar people.
O’Donnell previously spoke about DeGeneres when the former talk show host faced toxic workplace allegations in 2020.
“You can’t fake your essence,” O’Donnell replied when asked about the claims on Busy Philipps’ podcast at the time. “That’s why I have compassion for Ellen, right? I have compassion, even though, you know, I hear the stories and I understand. I think she has some social awkwardness.”