Sharon Osbourne sat down for her first interview since leaving The Talk last month, and offered her side of what happened.
Appearing on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher on Friday night, Osbourne insisted she’s not a racist and said she’s “hurt” about being accused of racism.
Maher began the discussion by asking the former CBS daytime talk show host how she’s doing. “It’s so many different things,” Osbourne replied. “I’m angry. I’m hurt.”
Related Story: Sheryl Underwood Experienced ‘Trauma’ During ‘The Talk’ Racism Debate
Late-night host Maher then offered a humorous take on “the tragic events” that led to Osbourne’s exit from The Talk after 11 years.
“So on your ironically titled show The Talk, you were talking. And if there’s one lesson from this, it’s that’s not allowed anymore. So I just want to say my view is nothing happened,” he said.
[Watch the video below]
Maher then gave an abbreviated account of what happened: “Meghan Markle and Prince Harry gave their interview with Oprah. Then your friend Piers Morgan — he’s a commentator in Britain — he said he didn’t believe things that Meghan Markle said. And then on your show, you said, ‘Well, he’s a good friend of mine and I don’t necessarily agree with his opinion, but he is entitled to his opinion.”
“So he was called the racist and lost his job, and you were called a racist and lost your job. Do I have it right?” Maher asked. “You’ve got it right. That’s exactly how it went,” Osbourne replied.
“I’ve been called so many things in my life. I am so used to being called names, but a racist is one I will not take,” she added.
Related Story: Sharon Osbourne Goes Off on Sheryl Underwood During ‘The Talk’ Racism Debate
But Maher’s version is not exactly what happened on the explosive episode of The Talk. Still, he blamed Osbourne’s job loss on woke culture.
“You have to agree with everything Meghan Markle says or you’re a racist? Is this the standard now?” he asked. “Disagreeing with someone does not make you a racist,” Osbourne responded, then blamed “disgruntled ladies” for the numerous allegations about her past use of racial slurs.
There was no mention of former The Talk co-hosts Holly Robinson Peete or Leah Remini who both went public with claims that Osbourne used racial slurs behind the scenes at The Talk. Maher also skipped over Osbourne’s treatment of The Talk co-host Sheryl Underwood, who is Black, on the March 10 episode of show.
At the time, Underwood asked Osbourne what she would say to people who think it’s racist to defend Morgan for dismissing Markle’s claims about racism in the U.K. “What would you say to people who feel that while you’re standing by your friend, it appears that you give validation or safe haven to something that he’s uttered that is racist? Even if you don’t agree with it,” Underwood said.
Osbourne responded: “I don’t know what he’s uttered that’s racist. I’m not trying to slide out of this one, I don’t know—tell me. What has he uttered that’s racist?”
She then became defensive and said, “And I think we should stop this f–king,” before she was muted by production and Underwood tossed to break.
When they returned from break things only got worse. As Underwood held back and struggled to find the right words, Osbourne pointed a finger at her and said: “Don’t try and cry. If anyone should be crying, it should be me.”
Osbourne apologized the next day on Twitter, writing: “To anyone of color that I offended and/or to anyone that feels confused or let down by what I said.”
Meanwhile, CBS launched an internal investigation. On March 26, the network announced Osbourne would not be returning to The Talk.
“As part of our review, we concluded that Sharon’s behavior toward her co-hosts during the March 10 episode did not align with our values for a respectful workplace,” CBS said in a statement.
Watch Osbourne’s appearance on Real Time below.