What To Know
- Jimmy Kimmel made the surprise announcement that he recruited Donald Trump foe Rosie O’Donnell to guest host.
- Here’s what we know about it so far.
The guest host list for Jimmy Kimmel Live!‘s summer season has been filled with an eclectic group of celebrities, and this week’s is bound to irk the president. Taking over Jimmy Kimmel’s station, the late-night host announced in June, is President Donald Trump‘s longtime insult target, Rosie O’Donnell. Kimmel revealed that he asked her to sub in for a week during his summer break, specifically because Trump dislikes her so.
“As a special treat for our commander in chief, I asked one of his all-time favorites, Rosie O’Donnell, to be here to keep the hits coming. So you’re welcome. And all I ask in return, Mr. President, is that you don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone,” he said.
O’Donnell told Variety that she was surprised to get Kimmel’s call about the gig. “We’ve never spoken on the phone; we’ve texted a few times. Howard Stern tried to make amends with us, so we’ve been at the same parties a few times and I would talk to his wife. But Jimmy was never a fan of mine, and it was kind of an adversarial relationship — not that I was fighting back, but I was like, ‘OK, one of the bro guys,’ she said. However, she softened on Kimmel after the death of his first responder uncle. “When everything happened with his uncle dying, I wrote him and he wrote back. So, when my publicist called and said, ‘Do you want to guest-host ‘Kimmel’ for a week?’ I said, ‘I haven’t ever even been a guest!’ And then I said, ‘If you’re positive that that’s an actual offer and he wants me to do it, then I most certainly will.’”
O’Donnell’s guest stint will begin on Monday, August 17.
O’Donnell shared the news on her Instagram, captioning a screengrab of the headline with, “And I can’t wait!!!” To that, the show’s channel responded, “We’re so excited!!!”
Her post was flooded with support from the likes of Bette Midler, Kristin Chenoweth, Natasha Lyonne, Rosanna Arquette, Randy Rainbow, and former CNN host Jim Acosta, among others. Some commenters predicted Trump would absolutely be watching the episodes, since he has a longstanding history of disliking O’Donnell.
In the past, Trump has referred to the comedic actress as “fat” and “a slob,” and the feud reportedly stems from his prior appearance on The View in which she, then a cohost, criticized him for his hair, accent, and history of bankruptcies, among other things. O’Donnell, in turn, has mocked Trump with derogatory photos in her Instagram feed and other places, and she famously relocated to Ireland before Trump’s second inauguration, citing political reasons.
Given the history of contemptuousness between O’Donnell and Trump, and the fact that the president has publicly demanded that Jimmy Kimmel Live! be shuttered by ABC — and came close to succeeding in 2025 when ABC’s affiliates refused to carry the show, prompting its suspension by the network, under pressure from the FCC — we can likely expect her to mock Trump during her tenure as guest host for JKL.
Other guest hosts who are lined up to fill in for Kimmel this summer include Tiffany Haddish, Anthony Anderson, Ike Barinholtz, Colman Domingo, and Jelly Roll.
Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Weeknights, 11:35/10:35c, ABC