ENTERTAINMENTDebbie Matenopoulos Rejoins 'The View' and Revisits Fight With Joy Behar: 'Such a Different Show'
Debbie Matenopoulos, Joy Behar and Sara Haines took a trip down memory lane during Matenopoulos' return to 'The View.'
Oct. 5 2026, Published 3:24 p.m. ET
Get any group together long enough, and they’ll start developing long-term in-jokes. Debbie Matenopoulos, one of the original co-hosts of The View, stepped in for a return visit on September 30.
Matenopoulos took Whoopi Goldberg’s chair, since she’s off filming a movie, and the rest of the current cast couldn’t resist poking fun at her past, especially her long-running mock feud with co-host Joy Behar.
'Did a Former Heavyweight Boxing Champ Have to Intervene in a Brawl?'
Debbie Matenopoulos was on the hot seat during her return to 'The View.'
“We couldn’t let one of the original view crew stop by for Season 30 without taking a trip down memory lane, so it’s time for another round of ‘Let’s Review,'” said Sara Haines.
Sunny Hostin put her on the hot seat first: “Did you learn the story of Boxing Day from Canadian legend Martin Short, or did a heavyweight boxing champ have to intervene in a brawl between you and another co-host?”
'I Don't Remember Trying to Beat Joy's A--'
Sunny Hostin asked Debbie Matenopoulos about her 1998 mock boxing match against Joy Behar.
When Matenopoulos hesitated, the gang rolled the tape: Matenopoulos and Behar engaging in a mock boxing match refereed by former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield. The match got so out of control that both Holyfield and co-host Star Jones got involved to break them up.
“I remember that, but I don’t remember trying to beat Joy’s a--,” Matenopoulos said.
“What I put up with to this day,” Behar responded. “We had fun in those days.”
“We did,” Matenopoulos agreed. “It was such a different show.”
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Debbie Matenopoulos Hears About 'SNL' More Than She Does 'The View'
Matenopoulos got into a tiff with Joy Behar.
Matenopoulos went on to relate her own unusual experiences with the show: “Most of the time, when I’m stopped in the street to talk about The View, it’s not about something that happened on The View. It’s actually something that The View was kind of parodied for.”
She then revealed that she meant the time Saturday Night Live skewered her 1999 firing from the show, three days after she was let go. Before that, she’d been portrayed by various SNL stars and guest hosts, including Claire Danes, Ana Gasteyer and Cameron Diaz. The sketches often included other hosts putting her in impossible situations, such as a brawl with an angry raccoon.
'We're Gonna Make Fun of You Anyway'
Debbie Matenopoulos played herself in a 'Saturday Night Live' sketch about her firing.
“They asked me to come on and play myself the same week that I was let go from here. So they fired me on Wednesday. SNL calls me and says, ‘Come on and play yourself. Because guess what? Guess what? We’re gonna make fun of you anyway.'”
She then showed the clip of herself coming up to the table late, saying, “I had a problem getting past security, and then for some reason, the keys to my dressing room door wouldn’t work. So what’d I miss?”
She was then told, “You’re fired. You’re not on the show anymore.”
Matenopoulos didn’t miss a beat in the sketch when she responded, “Well, I mean that’s cool. Still get paid, right?”
