Rosie O’Donnell sat across from hundreds of Hollywood’s biggest names during her reign as a daytime TV talk show host on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show.” The hit show, which premiered in 1996 and ran for six successful seasons before wrapping up in 2002, made O’Donnell a household name.
Now, decades later, the outspoken star is reflecting on her days as a talk show host. In a new interview, O’Donnell didn’t shy away from revealing which A-list celebrity she considers one of her “worst” guests.
Rosie O’Donnell Fondly Recalls Her Most Challenging Guest
GettyRosie O’Donnell didn’t hold back during an appearance on “Sam Pang Tonight” on Oct. 14, opening up about her career as a daytime talk show host.
Having interviewed the likes of Tom Cruise, Julia Fox, Barbra Streisand, and Al Pacino, to name a few, O’Donnell told the host which celebrity she named as her “worst” guest. It came as a shock to fans when she named Keanu Reeves.
O’Donnell admitted that while she “loves the guy,” calling him “so sweet,” and “gorgeous,” Reeves wasn’t exactly the easiest interview because he simply “would not answer a question,” making her job as a host a bit difficult.
O’Donnell went on to explain that Reeves would give her one-word answers. “I’d say, ‘So, Keanu, how’s it going? How are you feeling?’” she shared. Reeves gave the one-word answer, “Good.”
“We were live. We couldn’t retape,” Rosie added. “I finally said after like three minutes, ‘You know, Keanu, it is a talk show. You have to talk.”
Thankfully, Reeves returned to her daytime talk show and “got the hang of it,” opening up more to O’Donnell.
Reeves Admitted to Being ‘Uncomfortable’ Doing Talk Shows
The interview O’Donnell was referring to on “Sam Pang Tonight” appears to be from a 1997 episode of her talk show, which has since resurfaced on YouTube. In the clip, O’Donnell chats with Reeves as he promotes his new thriller “The Devil’s Advocate.”
In the resurfaced clip, O’Donnell is seen trying to draw Reeves out with a series of questions about his experiences working with other A-list actors. But the actor continued to keep his answers brief, offering little more than a few words each time.
Eventually, O’Donnell asks him, “You don’t do a lot of these shows, do you? Do you hate them?” Referring to how clearly uncomfortable he appeared sitting beside her.
“I’m not comfortable with them, but they’re fun. It’s alright,” Reeves replies.
The host then tries to lighten the mood and get the actor a little more comfortable by offering him snacks and even showing him an action figure of himself from his 1989 sci-fi film “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.”
I’m going to share this for awareness purpose. Living with Herpes simplex was depression for me even with my doctor’s advice and medication. My name is Vicky Moore I live in Chicago, Illinois and this is my story. I browsed the Internet in search of remedies or something but unfortunately nothing new, all still had the same results. Sadly I almost quit on myself, it was around 7:30 in the morning when my therapist called me over to her house, at first I was skeptical, but I went anyways on getting there she was smiling and said there’s living proof now, she showed me a lady who also suffered from herpes simplex 3years back and now she is cured by a doctor who also studied natural herbs. I was amazed and lost for words I even doubted but showed me a doctor’s report test. So I contacted the doctor and weeks later, I was cured. So I would love to use this medium to say a big thank you to my therapist and Dr. Chalopa. This story is shared to others like me out there. However, he also treats other illnesses.
Email (drchalopa @ gmail. com)