NEW YORK (AP) — Daytime’s “The View” revealed its latest makeover Monday, opening the post-Barbara Walters era with a new set, new boss, mostly new team and a promise to be provocative again.
Whoopi Goldberg is the only holdover on the daytime chatfest, which has faded in recent years as competitors sought to improve on its ensemble format. A slimmed-down Rosie O’Donnell returned for her second run, joined by actress Rosie Perez and former Republican political operative Nicolle Wallace.
“‘The View’ is the show that everyone has copied but we’re the original,” Goldberg said.
Backstage after the show, Goldberg said the hosts had been told the past few years to avoid political topics. That clearly wasn’t the case Monday, as the four cast members dove right into a discussion about domestic abuse and the National Football League, along with changing attitudes toward corporal punishment.
O’Donnell said that while she was able to look past abuse charges against Chris Brown and enjoy his work, she couldn’t do that with Woody Allen and no longer sees his movies.
Goldberg couldn’t stifle giggles when talking to Wallace about Sarah Palin, with whom she clashed while working for the GOP’s 2008 national ticket.
“When did you want to just pop her?” Perez asked.
Otherwise, Wallace struggled to get a few words in during her first show.
“I’m a Republican, we should get that out of the way,” she said in introducing herself.
“And I really like her!” O’Donnell shouted from two chairs away. “I swear to God.”
O’Donnell, who has shed more than 50 pounds after a heart attack last year, sat barefoot and cross-legged in her chair, saying she’s recovering from a nerve ailment. She said later the show seems to be moving toward discussions of what women “really care about, and it’s not all about pop culture.”
