Rosie O’Donnell Explains Unlikely ‘Love’ For Killer Lyle Menendez

Rosie O’Donnell says convicted murderer Lyle Menendez is the first straight man she ever loved and trusted.

In a New York Times interview, the comedian and former talk show host opened up about her bond with the self-admitted killer, who along with his brother Erik, is currently serving life in prison for the 1989 murder of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez.

O’Donnell and Menendez’s connection began long before they ever spoke.

The “Now and Then” actor first voiced support for the Menendez brothers during a 1996 appearance on “Larry King Live,” where she said she believed the brothers’ claim that they were survivors of their father’s sexual abuse and the murders were an act of self-defense.

Lyle wrote to O’Donnell after the show aired, thanking her for speaking out and saying he “knew” his allegations resonated with her because of her own personal experience.

O’Donnell, who wouldn’t go public with allegations she and her siblings were molested by her father until over two decades later, told the Times she wasn’t ready to respond to Menendez at the time.

“At that point, I had not ventured anywhere near this in my family or in my therapy,” she explained.

But in 2022, she was inspired to advocate for the brothers once again after watching the Max documentary “Menendez: Monsters or Misjudged.”

After defending them in a TikTok video, Menendez’s then-wife, Rebecca Sneed, reached out and asked if O’Donnell would be open to talking with Lyle Menendez directly.

Their first phone call lasted two to three hours, according to O’Donnell, and a friendship quickly formed.

“He started calling me on a regular basis from the tablet phone thing they have,” O’Donnell said. “He would tell me about his life, what he’s been doing in prison, and, for the first time in my life, I felt safe enough to trust and be vulnerable and love a straight man.”

The Menendez brothers have seen renewed public sympathy in recent years, particularly following the release of Ryan Murphy’s true-crime series “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.” They’re expected to appear in court next week, where a judge will decide whether they should be resentenced and eligible for release.