Rosie O’Donnell has stepped in as the week-long guest host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! while Kimmel is away, and she wasted no time addressing President Donald Trump during her debut. On Monday night, August 17, 2026, O’Donnell walked on stage wearing a pink suit decorated with flowers and received loud applause and chants of “RO-SIE! RO-SIE!”
She then referenced Trump’s long history of criticizing the late-night program and warned the viewers, saying, “If you thought the president hated ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ when it was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel? Buckle up, people! Buckle up.”
Why was Rosie O’Donnell surprised by Jimmy Kimmel’s guest hosting offer?
In an interview with Variety, O’Donnell revealed that she was “surprised” when Kimmel approached her about guest hosting his show. Although she has extensive experience as a television host with The Rosie O’Donnell Show and The View, the invitation was unexpected for her, as no one has ever asked her to guest host a late-night show before.
She accepted the offer anyway, mainly because she supported Kimmel when Trump was trying to get his show canceled over jokes he disliked.
O’Donnell believes Kimmel is “fantastic” for “what he’s doing with the First Amendment.” She added, “And I wish that Stephen Colbert had the same kind of support when it happened to him, because he shouldn’t be gone either.” During her debut, she criticized the president while using jokes to talk about the tension around late-night TV.
O’Donnell also called out Trump by referring to him as “Mango Mussolini” during the episode and said she lived in Ireland for the past two years because of him, as it is a place “where people are driven to drink regardless of who’s running their country.”
Later, she pointed at the camera and directly addressed Trump and said, “Hi! I know you’re watching!”
With Kimmel temporarily stepping away, O’Donnell confidently hosted the show, joking about her time in Ireland and chatting with guests Hannah Waddingham and Ana Gasteyer. She also paid an emotional tribute to Hayden Panettiere and praised her for openly speaking about mental health.
This article was originally reported by Isha Sharma on ComingSoon.
