Rosie O’Donnell on Her Relationship With Barbara Walters: ‘I Think She’s a Wonderful Woman”

After working on The View from 2006 to 2007 for season 10 and again in 2014 to 2015 for season 18, Rosie O’Donnell has nothing but great things to say about the show’s creator and executive producer, Barbara Walters.

“I think she’s a wonderful woman, and it’s hard to age in America, never mind if you’re internationally famous,” she told Us Weekly. “I’ll always love and respect her and I think she’s a great person.”

Even though Rosie, 57, and Barbara, 90, got along well, she doesn’t remember having the same kind of affection towards Whoopi Goldberg, who has been on the show since 2007 beginning with season 11.

“Whoopi Goldberg was as mean as anyone has ever been on television to me, personally — while I was sitting there. Worse than Fox News. The worst experience I’ve ever had on live television was interacting with her,” the comedian previously recalled in the tell-all book Ladies Who Punch: The Explosive Inside Story of ‘The View.’

Their feud was so apparent that Rosie said anyone who watched the show could tell that there was something going on between her and Whoopi. “Some people would say, ‘What’s going on with you and Whoopi?’” she asked. “I was like, ‘Are you watching the show? It’s pretty much right there.’ I have no desire for a public feud.”

However, all that’s behind them now. When Rosie sat down for an interview with the Ladies Who Punch author Ramin Setoodeh, she told him she has nothing but love for Whoopi today.

“She’s a minority, feminist, smart, funny, groundbreaking legend who is black in America,” she explained. “I’m never going to not have respect for Whoopi Goldberg. But that was a painful experience, personally and professionally.”

Rosie also opened up about her relationship with Whoopi on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. “You know, I’m always going to respect her. I’m always gonna look up to her,” she said. “She’s somebody who was inspirational in my career and, you know, you like to keep those people in a place of reverence if you can. And that’s what I’m hoping to do.”

We love that there isn’t any bad blood between Rosie, Whoopi and Barbara. What an incredible trio of ladies!