Rosie O’Donnell reveals why filming intimate with Cynthia Nixon was ‘horrifying’

Rosie O’Donnell admitted she was extremely “nervous” to film an intimate scene with her longtime friend Cynthia Nixon on “And Just Like That.”

The former talk show host — who played a nun who has her first sexual experience with Nixon’s character in Season 3 of the “Sex and the City” spin-off — described the experience as “horrifying” on Amy Poehler’s “Good Hang” podcast Thursday.

“First of all, I love [Nixon]… and have so much respect for her,” O’Donnell said, adding, “The kissing wasn’t hard, but the laying in bed and the wanting us to act like we had just done it… I was like ‘Uhh.’ But I’m a little immature when it comes to that.”

O’Donnell, 64, explained that she didn’t know what her guest spot on the show would entail when Nixon, 60, first told her that showrunner Michael Patrick King had written a scene for them and asked if she’d do it.

“I said, ‘Of course, I’ll do it with you,’ you know. And then I read it, and I’m, like, in bed with just the sheets. I’m like, ‘Oh, my God,’” she recalled.

The actress told Poehler that she was “nervous with Cynthia” because the only other sex scene she had filmed in her career was with the late Julian McMahon during her stint on FX’s “Nip/Tuck.”

“Then Michael said, ‘You know, you guys can be a little bit more…,’ and I’m thinking, ‘I can’t, really,’” O’Donnell said.

“Also, it’s weird to kiss your friends,” Poehler pointed out. O’Donnell responded, “Yes, exactly.”

During a May 2025 appearance on “Radio Andy,” Andy Cohen’s SiriusXM radio show, Nixon said that O’Donnell was “amazing” while filming her role on “And Just Like That.”

“She was so centered and wonderful, you know, so real and tender, and hopeful,” “The Gilded Age” actress added.

Nixon also revealed that King had been writing a part with O’Donnell in mind for every season of the series, but it never worked out.

“Finally, we snagged her for the pilot of Season 3,” Nixon said.

Despite the discomfort of the filming the scene, O’Donnell had nothing but praise for Nixon, telling Poehler that she is “the real deal.”

The pair have been friends since Nixon appeared on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” which aired from 1996 to 2002.

“She’s one of the best actresses that we have. She stands up for injustice wherever she sees it. She puts her money where her mouth is. She loves her children and her wife,” O’Donnell said. “I admire her greatly.”