Rosie O’Donnell had a message for Donald Trump during her return to late night: thanks for the publicity.
During her second night guest-hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the comedian joked that her decades-long public feud with the president somehow helped turn her into a familiar face again.
“This has been kind of a strange experience for me because all of a sudden I’m re-famous,” O’Donnell told the audience.
Then she delivered the punchline.
“You know, I couldn’t have done it without you, sweetie. You brought me back, just like you did with fascism and the measles,” she joked.
The line was classic O’Donnell: a mix of sarcasm, nostalgia, and a reminder that one of entertainment’s most unusual rivalries is still generating headlines nearly 20 years after it began.
Her comment was part of a comedy routine, not a literal claim that Trump had anything to do with her return. The four-night guest hosting appearance, which runs from August 17 through August 20, came after Jimmy Kimmel personally selected her to fill in during his summer break.
But O’Donnell clearly understood that her history with Trump was impossible to ignore.
A Feud That Started With the View and Became Part of Pop Culture
The joke landed because audiences already know the backstory.
O’Donnell and Trump’s public clash dates back to 2006, when O’Donnell criticized Trump on The View after he allowed Miss USA Tara Conner to keep her crown while entering rehabilitation following reports of misconduct.
O’Donnell questioned Trump’s image as a businessman and public figure, calling him a “snake oil salesman” and criticizing his role as a moral voice.
Trump quickly fired back, calling O’Donnell “disgusting, both inside and out” and a “slob” during television interviews.
At the time, it was a celebrity feud. Years later, it became something much bigger.
When Trump entered presidential politics, their disagreement followed him into campaign coverage. During the 2015 Republican presidential debate, moderator Megyn Kelly asked Trump about his history of insulting women.
Trump’s response was brief. “Only Rosie O’Donnell.”
The moment became one of the most replayed exchanges from the debate and ensured their feud remained part of political and entertainment history.
Rosie Leans Into the Attention Instead of Avoiding It
O’Donnell’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! appearance showed that she knows exactly why viewers were interested.
Rather than pretending the Trump connection did not exist, she turned it into material.
During her first night hosting, she joked directly toward the camera: “Hi, I know you’re watching.”
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She also warned viewers: “If you thought the president hated Jimmy Kimmel Live! when it was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, buckle up, people. Buckle up.”
The jokes played on Trump’s well-known habit of responding publicly to critics, but they also reflected O’Donnell’s own complicated relationship with fame.
Before her appearance, she told People it was strange that someone she once criticized as a television personality later became president and remained connected to her public identity.
“It’s very strange to have supposedly the most powerful man in the world be your arch nemesis,” she said.
The Rivalry Has Followed Both of Them Into the Political Era
The O’Donnell-Trump feud has resurfaced several times over the years.
In 2025, Trump criticized O’Donnell after she spoke out against his administration and suggested he was considering taking away her citizenship. The comment was a political attack, not an actual legal action, and no citizenship change occurred.
O’Donnell responded by describing herself as “a loud woman” and “a mother who tells the truth.”
The latest chapter, however, returned the feud to where it started: entertainment.
On Jimmy Kimmel Live!, O’Donnell was not making a political speech. She was turning a strange chapter of celebrity history into a late-night punchline.
A Comeback That Turned an Old Rivalry Into New Material
O’Donnell’s return was greeted with enthusiasm from the studio audience, with reports describing a standing ovation and chants of “Rosie, Rosie, Rosie” when she appeared.
Trump has not publicly responded to her Jimmy Kimmel Live! appearances, and there is no verified evidence that he watched the broadcasts.
The White House did respond, however. Spokesperson Davis Ingle criticized O’Donnell’s comments, calling her a “nasty woman” and accusing her of having “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
For O’Donnell, the attention was the joke.
A feud that began with a daytime television argument has now stretched across reality TV, presidential campaigns, social media and late-night comedy.
And after all these years, Rosie O’Donnell is still finding ways to turn it into a punchline.
Do celebrity rivalries like Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump’s keep entertainers relevant, or do they eventually overshadow their work?
