Jimmy Kimmel Announces Rosie O’Donnell as Guest Host
Jimmy Kimmel shared that comedian Rosie O’Donnell will temporarily take over his late-night show while he takes a two-month break.
“I’m voluntarily taking the next two months off,” Kimmel said during the Thursday night episode, humorously referencing the show being briefly canceled by ABC after his comments regarding Charlie Kirk’s death last September.
Despite his absence, Kimmel has lined up a strong roster of guest hosts, including Tiffany Haddish, Colman Domingo, Ike Barinholtz, Anthony Anderson, and Jelly Rolle.
“I asked Rosie O’Donnell, one of the commander’s favorites, to come here to keep the hits coming,” he said, eliciting loud applause from the audience.
O’Donnell, who previously left the U.S. after Donald Trump’s second election win, now resides in Ireland with her 13-year-old son, Clay.
Over the years, she has had a complicated relationship with Trump. Their feud escalated in July 2025, when he threatened to revoke her U.S. citizenship, stating on Truth Social that he was considering it “due to the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interest of our country.”
He further remarked, “She is a threat to humanity, and if they want her, she should stay in this great country of Ireland. God bless America.”
O’Donnell responded in a passionate Instagram post, accusing Trump of being a “criminal con artist who sexually abuses to harm the country.” She emphasized that this is why she relocated to Ireland.
It seems O’Donnell will be returning to the U.S. for an extended time, as her citizenship appears unaffected.
Interestingly, this isn’t her first return since moving. In February, she mentioned that she discreetly visited the U.S. to see her family. “I went home for two weeks recently and didn’t really tell anyone. I just went to see my family,” she shared on “SiriusXM’s Cuomo Mornings.”
She further explained, “I wanted to know how difficult it is to get in and out of this country. I wanted to feel what it felt like. I wanted to hug my kids again. I hadn’t been home in over a year.”
Just this week, she also made an appearance on “Watch What Happens Live,” which was filmed in New York City.
