Rosie O'Donnell Makes First Public Appearance Since Revealing She Had a Facelift as She Steps Out at 2026 Tony Awards
Rosie O'Donnell Makes First Public Appearance Since Revealing She Had a Facelift as She Steps Out at 2026 Tony Awards
Catherine SantinoMon, June 8, 2026 at 1:00 AM UTC
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Rosie O'Donnell.Credit: Dia Dipasupil/WireImage -
Rosie O'Donnell stepped out for the 2026 Tony Awards, marking her first public appearance since revealing she had a facelift
The comedian revealed that she underwent the procedure in a May 26 Substack post
On the Tonys red carpet, O'Donnell told E! News that she opened up about her facelift because she "just felt it was better to be truthful than not"
Rosie O'Donnell is stepping out for the first time since revealing that she had a facelift in January.
On Sunday, June 7, the 64-year-old former talk show host appeared at the 2026 Tony Awards in New York City in a black suit with a geometric pattern.
In a May 26 Substack post titled "decisions," O'Donnell revealed that she underwent a facelift, the results of which she shared in unfiltered before-and-after photos on Instagram.
Speaking with E! News on the Tonys red carpet, O'Donnell said that she opened up about the procedure because she "wanted to be truthful."
"All that matters is truth and love," she shared. "And so I wanted to be truthful and say all the complicated emotions I had about it. I just felt it was better to be truthful than not and I didn't want some tabloid to go, 'Gotcha!'"
The comedian continued, "I just wanted to say this is what I did and here's the doctor and if you want to, but it's very expensive. It's more expensive than any car I ever bought, but I can't drive around in my face."
Rosie O'Donnell.Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty
In her Substack essay, O'Donnell shared the story behind her transformation — which she wrote "cost more money than I have ever paid for a car."
She admitted that she always felt "very strongly about facelifts" and prided herself on being someone "who would never - ever" get one. "I thought it was a betrayal. Of feminism. Of aging. Of our team of women worldwide," but then, "I lost 50 pounds…," she added.
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Although the former View co-host said that it sometimes felt inauthentic to be completely against cosmetic procedures. "There's a point where acceptance starts to feel like lying."
In the post, O'Donnell said that she researched facelifts, but her feelings towards them shifted again when her daughter Clay, 13, found out and advised against it. (O'Donnell is mom to Clay as well as kids Parker Jaren O'Donnell, 31, Chelsea Belle O'Donnell, 28, Blake Christopher O'Donnell, 26, and Vivienne Rose O'Donnell, 23.)
Rosie O'Donnell before and after her facelift.Credit: Rosie O'Donnell/Instagram (2)
Clay "sounded exactly like me. Like my younger, more certain, more morally rigid self had somehow moved into my house," O'Donnell explained. She saw the exchange as a learning opportunity for her children. "I want them to grow up in a world where they don't feel like they have to change but also know they can, if they want to, without losing moral standing in their own lives."
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O'Donnell concluded her post by calling this stage of her life "act 3."
"As I get ready for the last day of school with my youngest - the caboose, here at 64 years old with a new lower face and neck, just happy to be alive. Able to feel and choose and use my voice whenever I feel called to," she shared. "For the girl I was. The woman I am."
The 2026 Tony Awards air on CBS and stream on Paramount+.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
