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Rosie O'Donnell breaks silence on ‘painful’ end to her friendship with Ellen DeGeneres
Rosie O'Donnell discussed the emotional toll of her friendship's end with Ellen DeGeneres, highlighting a 2004 interview where DeGeneres distanced herself.
Rosie O'Donnell opened up about an end to her friendship with Ellen DeGeneres, describing it as one of the “most painful things that ever happened to me”.
The 63-year-old Now and Then star recalled DeGeneres's 2004 Larry King Live appearance, in which she rejected ever knowing O'Donnell in a television interview, despite the fact that O'Donnell dubbed it as a decades-long friendship.
Rosie O'Donnell recalls ‘most painful things’
Appearing on Mamamia's No Filter podcast on September 7, O’Donnell said, “I couldn't believe it. I have photos of her holding my newborn babies. I knew her for 30 years.”
“That was one of the most painful things that ever happened to me, in show business and my life,” she added.
During her well-known 1996 appearance on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, DeGeneres made reference to rumors that she was a lesbian. While she came out as a lesbian on her sitcom in 1997, O'Donnell did the same in 2002.
According to O'Donnell, she stood by DeGeneres when she opened up about her identity. She, however, blamed DeGeneres of doing the opposite, claiming that she did not stand next to her and held her hand.
“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 said.
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Does Rosie O'Donnell want an apology from DeGeneres?
O'Donnell went on to say that she and DeGeneres have "never gotten over it" since their ties ended, and she hasn't gotten an apology.
She even suggested what she would have done if she was in her place. “I would have said, ‘I'm really sorry I hurt you that much and I don't know why I did that. It was a mistake and I hope you can forgive me.’”
Although DeGeneres hasn't discussed her connection with O'Donnell in public, she stood up for her earlier this year when US President Donald Trump warned to take away her US citizenship. In a message to O'Donnell on Instagram, she said, “Good for you.”
O'Donnell shared three children with her ex-wife Kelli Carpenter -- Parker, 30, Chelsea, 27, Blake, 25, and Vivienne, 22. She and her late ex-wife Michelle Rounds welcomed a 12-year-old son, Clay.
In 2008, DeGeneres tied the knot to Portia de Rossi and moved to the Cotswolds in November 2024.
