It’s only been a few days since Sherri Shepherd and Jenny McCarthy were officially dropped from ABC’s daytime series The View. Not one to linger on bad news, ABC has already started looking for replacements for the two cast members. This morning, it seems the network has settled on pursuing a former host to take one of the program’s now-open slots. If the deal officially goes through, Rosie O’Donnell will be re-joining The View very soon.
ABC hasn’t officially announced the famous woman’s return. However, TMZ is openly stating her return is imminent, while other news outlets seem to think the deal is close to working out. If she does sign on, she’ll join Whoopi Goldberg on the panel. The rumor mill also indicates that ABC is looking to hire two more lucky ladies to round out the panel, with TMZ claiming they are looking for a conservative and a famous Latina individual.
If O’Donnell does join The View, it marks her first big gig since her talk show on OWN ended back in 2012. While her OWN show may not have brought in big ratings, her original tenure on The View did. When Rosie O’Donnell signed on to the talker back in 2006, she became known for her outspoken opinions. She eventually left the series after having an on-air disagreement about the Iraq War that caused some waves. Funnily enough, current moderator Whoopi Goldberg actually ended up being her replacement.
It’s interesting that the show might want to shake things up years after they wanted O’Donnell to leave. However, The View, once a morning juggernaut, has been less dominant in the ratings lately, especially since Barbara Walters retired in May. Maybe what the show needs is a funnywoman who can shake things up. Additionally, it seems the problem they had with O’Donnell is water under the bridge. The woman appeared on The View this past February for the first time since she left in 2007. Since Goldberg and O’Donnell are both dominant personalities, maybe some real debate can finally be sparked. The show’s been lacking intelligent debate since Walters left. Shepherd’s a nice lady who sometimes offers interesting information, but in the opinion realm, she’s kind of a wet noodle. And we all know where Jenny McCarthy’s wackjob opinions have gotten her.
If Rosie O’Donnell does return to The View, I don’t know if she will be the best fit for the series. However, I do appreciate that O’Donnell has always been a woman to try new activities and to never give up when projects don’t always work out for the best. You can catch new episodes of The View on weekdays at 11 a.m. ET.
