More than a decade after her last time at the desk, Rosie O’Donnell says she’s open to guest-hosting The View again—while also revisiting her long-running feud with Elisabeth Hasselbeck, including the split-screen moment that defined their 2007 Iraq War clash.
Rosie O’Donnell wasn’t back at The View’s table this time—she was talking about it on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen on June 19, 2026.
The invitation question came straight from the audience. An attendee asked whether O’Donnell would consider guest-hosting The View again. O’Donnell said she would be open to it, but made clear she hasn’t been asked and will have to wait to see what happens.
It wasn’t the only View-related follow-up. The same audience member asked if she had watched Elisabeth Hasselbeck’s weeklong return to The View earlier this year. O’Donnell said she had—and then pivoted to what she sees as the role Hasselbeck plays on television. In the era of President Donald Trump, O’Donnell believes producers want personalities like Hasselbeck “spouting their rhetoric.”.
Cohen then brought the conversation back to the moment that turned their on-air tension into show legend. He revisited O’Donnell’s infamous 2007 clash with Hasselbeck. when the show cut to a split screen during their heated debate over the Iraq War. O’Donnell said she was still annoyed, joking that “a mommy knows how to hold a grudge.”.
O’Donnell’s View history is its own timeline of comebacks and exits. She first joined The View in 2007 but left after one season. She returned in 2015 and then exited just five months into an 11-month contract with ABC. Later, O’Donnell told Entertainment Tonight that she left to focus on her family after her divorce from Michelle Rounds. In a YouTube video at the time. she explained that stress was especially harmful for heart attack survivors. adding that reducing stress. exercising regularly. and maintaining a healthy diet were priorities behind her decision.
The feud itself flared again in October 2025. when Hasselbeck discussed the split-screen incident during an interview on the Australian radio program Ricki-Lee. Tim & Joel. O’Donnell responded by claiming the split screen was intentional. saying the show’s producer wasn’t the type to make that decision spontaneously and insisting “that was prepared.”.
In October 2025, O’Donnell told Australian radio that producer Bill Geddie staged the split-screen incident. She also described what happened once the segment aired: she went to her dressing room to pack her belongings. returned briefly to finish the remaining segments. and then walked out for good. O’Donnell compared it to being benched during a game.
Hasselbeck pushed back with a series of Instagram Stories. urging O’Donnell to “stop the lying” while saying she forgave her. Hasselbeck said she forgave O’Donnell despite their feud. asking her to end what she called “madness.” O’Donnell answered with a sarcastic knock-knock joke on her own Instagram Stories. telling Hasselbeck that nothing was holding her back and that she doesn’t hold back.
In March, Hasselbeck revisited the split-screen controversy on The View companion podcast, “Behind the Table.” She described it as a stressful day that helped determine who would be invited back to the show, and said that— with maturity— she still believes her position that day would be unchanged.
For O’Donnell, the grudge has lasted nearly two decades, even as she signals she’s willing to come back if invited. She also claimed on TikTok that ABC is “reviewing the liberal bias” on “The View.”
The comments land while O’Donnell is back in New York City for her one-woman show. For now, she said she has not received an invitation from ABC or from The View’s producers.
Rosie O’Donnell The View Andy Cohen Watch What Happens Live Elisabeth Hasselbeck Bill Geddie Iraq War split screen Season 30 ABC Behind the Table Ricki-Lee Tim & Joel