Rosie O’Donnell Wanted To Go To ‘The Talk’ After Julie Chen’s Exit (EXCLUSIVE)

Rosie O’Donnell did want to go to “The Talk,” Ramin Setoodeh, author of “Ladies Who Punch,” told Access Live exclusively on Tuesday.

Julie Chen had just left her seat on “The Talk” following the downfall of her husband and CBS head honcho Les Moonves in 2018, and apparently Rosie was totally down to take on Julie’s spot.

“This is an ‘Access’ exclusive. She [Rosie] and I were talking on Twitter and I DM-ed her right when Julie Chen left, and she said she was interested in the seat,” Setoodeh shared. “She went out and tried it. She was open to moving to Los Angeles at the time. She’s now said that she doesn’t want to move, but she was interested in doing the show.”

Apparently, Rosie’s decision not to join “The Talk” came down to her salary.

“I think money was an issue,” Setoodeh explained. “Rosie O’Donnell isn’t cheap.”

While Rosie didn’t work out on the “The Talk,” it would have been an interesting move given her two-time tenure on “The View.” Setoodeh revealed that it likely would have been a good spot for Rosie, especially given the not-so-great treatment she got at “The View” previously.

“I think the most difficult situation in the show was 2014, Barbara Walters retires, Whoopi Goldberg’s the moderator, they bring Rosie O’Donnell back for the second time on the show. And she wants to be the moderator and you can see it the viewers could see it every single day they were fighting,” Setoodeh shared.

“She said Whoopi was worse to her than Fox News,” Setoodeh dished. “Which is pretty bad if you’re Rosie O’Donnell, because Fox News has been pretty tough on Rosie O’Donnell.”