Rosie O'Donnell says she was asked about running for SAG-AFTRA president but suggested Fran Drescher instead

• Rosie O'Donnell says she was asked about running for SAG-AFTRA president in 2021.
• She told The Wall Street Journal she didn't want to run, but suggested Fran Drescher instead.

Fran Drescher, 65, is best known as the star of the 90s sitcom "The Nanny." She's now back on the screen as the leader of the actors' union, which recently voted to go on strike to demand better pay and conditions.

It was almost another 90s comedy star.

Rosie O'Donnell told The Wall Street Journal that the SAG-AFTRA had been in touch before its most recent election in 2021 to ask if she was interested in running as president.

She said she wasn't interested but suggested they contact her friend Drescher instead, because of her "Norma Rae-like ability to inspire."

"She's like a stand-up. She can succinctly choose the words that are going to have the most impact in the smallest amount of time," O'Donnell told the newspaper. "When I heard her speaking, I'm like, 'This is why it's wonderful to have a performer as the president.'"

Despite her lack of involvement with unions, Drescher decided to stand just days before the election and emerged victorious, narrowly defeating Matthew Modine.

Drescher had been conducting negotiations with the studios and producers alongside union officials, including the secretary-treasurer Joely Fisher, who had been aligned with Modine for the last election.

Fisher told the Journal that Drescher's lack of prior involvement in the union had worked in her favor and the pair were standing for reelection in September.

Some 160,000 SAG-AFTRA members voted to walk out earlier this month after talks broke down. Like writers who went on strike in May, they want better protection from studios on issues like wages and staffing, and the rise of artificial intelligence.rose o