Rosie O'Donnell Reveals Details About Filming Her Only Intimate TV Scene With a Man — 'He Was Just So Perfect'
Rosie O'Donnell gave the spicy details about her love scene with Julian McMahon.
Aug. 11 2026, Published 7:50 p.m. ET
Rosie O'Donnell has spilled on the only intimate scene she ever filmed with a man, revealing late actor Julian McMahon's reaction after she ditched her tube top amid camera issues, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The 64-year-old comedian guest-starred in four episodes of McMahon's dark FX plastic-surgery drama Nip/Tuck, even jumping into bed with his womanizing character, Dr. Christian Troy, for a October 2006 episode
Rosie O'Donnell's Tube Top Was Getting in the Way of Filming
O'Donnell was supposed to appear as if she was in the buff but wore a tube top and underwear.
"Like, I only did one s-x scene in my life, and it was with Julian McMahon from Nip/Tuck, and he was such a gentleman," O'Donnell gushed to host Amy Poehler on the Tuesday, August 11 episode of her Good Hang podcast.
"I had a tube top on and like little underpants, and I'm supposed to be naked, and he's got a little c--- sock, and he's like leaning. His arms are shaking cause he doesn't want to put his body on mine, you know," she continued, setting the scene.
"And so finally, after three takes, they said, 'We keep seeing the top, the tube top,'" O'Donnell shared about how the garment was getting in the way of it appearing that the two were completely in the buff.
Julian McMahon Complimented Rosie O'Donnell's Bare Chest
Julian McMahon died after a secret battle with cancer in 2025.
"And I looked at him, and he's this gorgeous, God rest his soul, gorgeous Greek statue of a man," O'Donnell recalled of McMahon, who died in July 2025 at the age of 56 after a secret battle with cancer.
"He's a Kennedy in my mind. Like he's just so – was just so perfect."
O'Donnell described her solution to her clothing getting in the way, revealing, "And so, I pulled down my tube top, and I said, 'Julian, those are my b----.' And he said, 'Nice rack.' And I said, 'Really?' And he said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Oh, OK, great.'"
Rosie O'Donnell Was a Recurring Guest Star on 'Nip/Tuck'
O'Donnell's 'Nip/Tuck' character paid Dr. Christian Troy $400K for an intimate revenge romp.
O'Donnell first appeared on Nip/Tuck as super-rich patient Dawn Budge, who won $381 million in the Powerball lottery and wanted to treat herself and her family to the high-end plastic surgery services of Dr. Troy at his South Beach practice, McNamara/Troy.
The former talk show host popped up several times throughout seasons four and five of the series.
O'Donnell's character offered Christian a chance to name his price to sleep with her as an outrageous act of revenge after catching her husband, Dwight, in bed with her daughter, Mallory.
McMahon's character agreed to do the deed with Dawn for a whopping $400,000, as the two bedded down to complete the transaction.
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Rosie O'Donell's Second Intimate Scene Was With Cynthia Nixon
Pals Cynthia Nixon and O'Donnell shared an intimate scene on HBO's 'And Just Like That.'
O'Donnell's only other intimate on-screen encounter came in a 2025 episode of HBO's And Just Like That, when Cynthia Nixon's Miranda Hobbes gave O'Donnell's out-of-town nun character, Mary, her first bedroom experience.
The two women are close friends in real life, so O'Donnell was thrilled to take on the role until she cracked open the script and discovered they would be hopping into the sack together.
"The kissing wasn't hard, but the lying in bed and the wanting us to act as if we had just done it, I was like..." O'Donnell confessed to Poehler, making a squeamish sound, admitting she was a "little immature" about filming the intimate aftermath.
