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Rosie O’Donnell is back in America — with plenty to say.
The comedy icon is bringing her one-woman show, “Rosie O’Donnell: Common Knowledge,” to New York’s Daryl Roth Theatre for 12 performances beginning July 22. Directed
by Gabriel Barre, “Common Knowledge” sees the 64-year-old star chronicle everything from her 18 months of living in Ireland (and the myriad cultural differences she’s encountered) to raising a nonbinary child with autism. The Long Island native previously performed the show in Ireland, Scotland and Australia before bringing it to her old stomping grounds.
O’Donnell rather famously decamped to her ancestral homeland just prior to her longtime nemesis Donald Trump’s second inauguration. The former host of “The View” read the GOP’s Project 2025 transition plan and thought, “Oh, my God! They’re saying this part out loud? Imagine how bad it will be when he gets in!” O’Donnell was concerned about her own well-being, and that of her fifth and youngest child. “I didn’t do so well when [Trump] was in the first time,” she says, about Trump’s first presidential term. “And I knew with a nonbinary autistic child that I would need to be present, and not overwhelmed by the constant barrage of Trumpness that comes in America. During the horrors of World War II, they came first for the disabled. … I feel I was warranted in doing what I needed to do in order to protect myself and my family.”
In an no-holds-barred talk with Variety, O’Donnell discussed the play, how she tried to help her “Harriet the Spy” co-star Michelle Trachtenberg toward the end of her life and why she thinks Trump — who recently posted a bizarre AI video of her and has threatened to revoke her U.S. citizenship — has held a 20-year grudge against her.
You’re from Long Island like my dad. I read that you grew up a New York Jets fan. Are you still?
Well, you know, I like the Eagles now since they didn’t go to the White House.
I grew up a Jets fan, and it’s a very toxic relationship.
There was the Joe Namath of it all. If you’re 64 years old, it was all about Joe Namath and the Noxzema shaving cream commercials when I was a kid. He was a really big deal, as was Bud Harrelson of the Mets.
See, I didn’t get that Joe Namath. I only got drunk Joe Namath trying to kiss a sideline reporter. I’ve only known pain and heartbreak when it comes to the Jets.
I got you. It’s hard to be a Jets fan. I feel for you.
I saw you on “Watch What Happens Live!,” and you look great. It’s very refreshing to listen to a Hollywood star talk about their facelift and the work they got done.
It felt like a lie, you know? I don’t like secrets, and I don’t like lies, in the same way that it annoyed me when people would go on GLP-1s and then not tell everyone that that’s what they did. If someone had a weight problem their whole life and then didn’t, and they’re losing that much weight that quickly, you know that’s what they’re doing. I just feel it’s unfair to present a fake version of yourself and say, “Oh, this is all natural!”
A lot of my friends had done it, and told me how they felt so much better about themselves when they looked in the mirror, and I had very big marionette lines from weight loss from the GLP-1s, so I asked the doctor, “Is there any way you can do from [the bottom of the nose] down?” Because I just wanted to get rid of the loose skin and the marionette lines. I told the doctor right before I went under, “I will never say, ‘God, I wish you did more.’” He said nobody ever told him that, and he’d take it to heart. My little daughter, who is 13, said, “I would never respect you again if you did it, and I would have a very hard time with it.” And I came home, and they didn’t even know!
Congratulations on “Common Knowledge” coming to New York City. What made you want to tackle a one-woman show?
I tried to do it 10 years ago with Dick Scanlan, who’s an amazing writer, and we did a really good play, but when we did readings of it, I cried every time, so I wasn’t able to do it publicly. When I got to Ireland right before Trump’s inauguration, I saw people who reminded me of my family members. I’d see a 90-year-old woman in the supermarket and go, “God, if my mother lived, that would be her.” I was forced to face my family of origin in a way I hadn’t in a long time. The beauty of America is the melting pot and all the cultures that collide, but when you go to a country so small, there’s something about everyone there pretty much being Irish and looking genetically like you and your family. I only had two people I knew in the whole country — my cousins from Northern Ireland — and I started thinking about my mom, mothering and how differently I parent my autistic 13-year-old than I did my four grown children.
The show does seem to be, in large part, a love letter to autistic children and the parents of autistic children. In America we have Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is constantly saying terrible things about those with autism and painting them as —
— valueless! Such horrible things. It’s a community that I’m a member of, and have tremendous respect for. Parents of autistic children have helped me in my journey as a parent of an autistic child. There were things occurring, like full sentences at 10 months old, that never occurred with my other children, so I knew we were onto something. I wanted to talk about the joy of my child and how brilliant this child is, as well as some of the challenges. I didn’t want it to be the story of the “tragedy of autism,” because if you’re ready to be a parent, you’re ready to accept whatever you child comes with; and if you’re not ready to accept whatever your child comes with, don’t be a parent. I wanted to show autism in a different way than it’s portrayed, and I feel strongly about standing up for my most vulnerable child.
Did you ever rub shoulders with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.? Because you’ve made a few great appearances on “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” which stars his wife.
No, never. But I did play poker with Cheryl Hines a lot!
It is wild that Larry David set them up.
Yeah, and I’m sure it’s a moment he regrets. Listen: That man is a lunatic; his own family says so. He tried to get on Kamala Harris’ campaign first, and when she said, “No, thank you,” he went over to Trump. What kind of self-respect or dignity does he have to do that? To defile the legacy of his family and that family name is sickening, and turns my stomach. I think he’s a very dangerous, very selfish, very uneducated man who’s gotten away with so much privilege that he doesn’t even know what to do with himself.
Your move to Ireland is a big part of “Common Knowledge.” What made you want to move? Was it Trump and the chaotic environment he’s fostered here?
I didn’t do so well when he was in the first time, so when he got the nomination, I called my therapist and said, “If he gets in, I’m gonna have to go.” Because I read Project 2025, which most Americans did not, and if you read it, you really saw what their plan was. And I’m sad to say that they’ve pretty much accomplished all the horrors that they wrote in plain sight in that Project 2025 manual. I read it, and thought, “Oh, my God, they’re saying this part out loud? Imagine how bad it will be when he gets in?!”
I’m diagnosed with major depressive disorder, and sometimes it grabs ahold of me and I can’t shake it, and sometimes it’s very damaging to me and my ability to parent, and I knew with a nonbinary autistic child that I would need to be present and not overwhelmed by the constant barrage of Trumpness that comes in America. During the horrors of World War II, they came first for the disabled, and now RFK is trying to get a list of all the autistic people in the country, so it’s a very terrifying prospect. I feel I was warranted in doing what I needed to do in order to protect myself and my family. It’s not understood by some people, but I explain it in the show.
I’m curious how serious the threats you’ve gotten from Trump’s supporters have been given his many personal attacks against you.
I’m happy to say that I haven’t gotten any physical threats. People will sometimes say mean things about me online, which I don’t take to heart because everyone is a keyboard warrior behind the mask. I don’t take it seriously. I don’t listen to what a deranged person would yell at me randomly on the street, and don’t listen to what MAGA people have to say about my opinions. I really don’t. It was more the constant acceptance of what he’s done.
Now, this might be something that people think is silly, but the fact that he called up FIFA and had the penalty revoked for the American team, and America was like, “Yeah, that’s good! I didn’t think it was a red card anyway!” Well, you’re not the freakin’ ref! You don’t get to decide! Since when does he get to make and change the rules, the goalposts, whatever metaphor you want to use, and everyone just sits by and shrugs their shoulders? There’s so much corruption that we don’t even notice. It. The fact that that player [Folarin Balogun] did not say, “I will not play this game,” and the fact that the coach of the American team [Mauricio Pochettino] did not say, “This is not how we win,” and everyone was like, “Well, whatever…” I was horrified. I was horrified by the fact that he is able to get away with pretty much everything, and it’s sickening.
Why do you think he’s so Teflon? This is someone who was best friends with Jeffrey Epstein.
And Roy Cohn. From living in another country for a year and a half now, you really see how the media has failed us in America — especially television. That he was allowed to go on a show [“The Apprentice”] that was a reality show, and it was sold as fact when it was in fact fiction, because he was broke — one of the many times that he was broke — and this is a man who has been a failure at everything he’s ever tried, and he is mediocre beyond mediocre, and the fact that he is running our nation is an abomination. It’s the worst thing that ever happened to our country and I think it needs to be rectified sooner rather than later if we are to remain a democratic republic.
What do you think of the recent AI video he made of you? And why do you think he’s so obsessed with you in particular? This is the 20th anniversary of him being obsessed with you. One undressing you gave him on “The View” in 2006, and now you’ve dealt with 20 years of harassment from the guy.
My theory is — and I don’t know if this is accurate, but it’s my personal opinion — there have been so many comedians who have said things about him, but I am from the same area that he’s from. We both sound alike, and people sometimes say to me, “Oh, you sound like Trump,” which is probably the worst thing that you can say to me, because he sounds like a moron when I hear him speak. He can’t conjugate verbs properly. He can’t say four-syllable words. I don’t understand how people aren’t able to see it! It’s like willful blindness.
But I think I’m one of those tough girls from elementary school and junior high that said to him, “Shut the hell up! You’re not playing with us. Get out of here, you freakin’ idiot!” And he never got past it. I think I trigger him like a PTSD response of all his failures in his life as a kid. I mean, he didn’t have a happy home life. His mother has said some pretty horrible things about him. His niece, Mary Trump, talks about how he wasn’t respected in his family, and how poorly he’s treated some of his family members. I think he had a very torturous childhood, and I remind him of the girls who said, “You’re nothing,” and it scares him. That’s just my theory, Marlow.
Have you ever been offered to pop on a wig and parody Trump on “SNL” or anything?
No, I haven’t been asked to do that. But I put a picture up of me with Steve Bannon’s hair right when that was going down and I wrote, “SNL?” Lorne had apparently said, “She’s too angry. It’s not funny when you’re angry.” I wasn’t angry. I just thought it would be funny to do him. But no, I haven’t been asked to do that. But believe me, I would if they asked me.
My little sister was so obsessed with the movie “Harriet the Spy” growing up that she would spy on me with a little notebook and report on what I was doing. What was it like working with Michelle Trachtenberg, and how did her loss affect you?
It was a tragedy. She was a real genius child who was able to memorize anything, pick up her lines, you could improvise with her, and she was connected and right there. She was so close to her mother, Lana, and her sister, who’s a ballerina. They were a very loving family, and then, you know, she got into drugs and alcohol, I believe, and then I lost touch with her. In the last few years, when she was in pretty bad shape, she would call me and we would talk. I also called her mother to find out what was going on, and her mother told me what was happening, and how long it had been happening. We were supposed to see each other three or four times, and she just never showed up — sometimes at restaurants, other times at my house where we’d had someone prepare the whole meal. I would call her and go, “Honey, are you heading over?” and she’d go, “Was that today?” She was not in good shape. I didn’t think that she would die. With most people suffering from addiction, their loved ones think that they’ll survive it, but you can die from your addiction to drugs or alcohol, and it happens too often that it must be taken seriously.
I wish I could have done more. I tried to help her as much as I could, but she was inaccessible toward the end, and it was tragic. It reminded me of Whitney Houston where everyone knew what was going on, but no one was willing to say something, and often because the people that are closest to you are employed by you when you’re that big of an entity, and they don’t want to lose their job or their money. With Whitney, I did say that to her people when she didn’t show up [to “The Rosie O’Donnell Show”] for “Cinderella.” It was supposed to be a whole hour with her and Brandy, and she didn’t show up just a few minutes before the show went live. I said to them after the show, “This is her legacy, and if she dies it’s on your watch.” It’s horrible and addiction has hit my family, too. I have a daughter who’s addicted. She’s been sober a year and a half and she’s currently in prison, sadly, but she was born addicted to drugs and never really had a fair shake. It’s very serious and there are millions of families in America going through the same thing.
You were such a big part of my youth in films like “Sleepless in Seattle,” “A League of Their Own,” “The Flintstones,” etc. Why don’t we see you in movies anymore?
You know, I don’t know. I think that when I was on TV, once you get known as yourself, it’s hard to blend into a movie role. I was lucky in that I had some very wonderful roles in my over 50 years, and the last one I did was “I Know This Much Is True” with Mark Ruffalo on HBO. My goal was always to be an actress and to be on Broadway, not to be a stand-up comedian, so I’ve always felt very connected to that part of my career. I’m also aware of the reality that not many female-focused films get made. Now, thankfully, Reese Witherspoon is focusing on women’s projects with her company, and Geena Davis has that whole symposium and does all the metrics on how many women’s stories get told. She’s a genius, that woman. On “A League of Their Own,” we’d all be out causing trouble, and she’d be in her trailer making a paper organ that you could pump and it would play a song that she’d cut out on paper. The woman is in Mensa and totally a genius, and I think that she’s one of the best actresses we have.
Are you missing bagels over in Ireland? And what are some big differences you see over there?
I do. I definitely miss bagels, and when I got home, we were coming from the airport and I told the driver, “Hey, can you pull over at this bagel shop?” and I went in and got a bagel with a schmear. But it’s a tiny country, and they have such pride in themselves and each other and support each other in a way that only a country the size of South Carolina could. America is the land of gross excess. It’s too big a country to manage, to tell you the truth; it’s like five countries in one. To make a system that’s survived 250 years has been a challenge, but we have to hold on to the beliefs of the founding fathers and not let go now when fascism is at our doorstep, if not already in the door. The biggest thing I’ve noticed is they are not a celebrity-obsessed culture. People in the pubs would say, “Rosie, can I buy you a pint?” I’d say, “Why do you want to do that?” And they’d go, “We hate him too.” They’re very friendly, and very kind.
Would you recommend more Americans move abroad right now if they want to get away from all the noise?
If you’re a highly sensitive person and you feel like it might drag you into the undertow, and you have children and responsibilities, I can understand why you might do it. But I do believe that we have to stand as Americans and fight, whether you’re abroad and you’re still an American citizen — as I am and always will be. I am getting my co-citizenship with Ireland, because my grandparents were born there. And I will never give up my American citizenship, and that’s the only way it can be taken from you if you’re an American citizen, no matter what the current president says. The failure of America has been the inability to stop this madness, and the longer it goes, the more dangerous a position we’re in as a nation.
Lastly, Rosie, I have to ask: Can you split the G?
I can, but I don’t really enjoy the G! I don’t really like it! It tastes too much like coffee to me. I’ve only tasted coffee one time, and it was by mistake, and I really didn’t like it. When I got there, everybody was buying me Guinness until I finally had to tell the bartender, “Stop with the Guinness! Give me a red ale!”
This interview has been edited and condensed.
