What's Bill O'Reilly up to? He discusses possible return to TV, future projects in new interview

Will Bill O’Reilly return to television? The former Fox News star discussed the possibility in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

Only if the odds for success are high

O’Reilly has been out of the TV business since April, when he was abruptly fired from Fox over allegations of sexual misconduct. But O’Reilly said he will only return to TV if the “right situation” presents itself. He said he would make a definite decision next month. He spent more than 20 years on the air with Fox News.

"I'm waiting to see very specific details of the projects that people have pitched to us. And there have been many,” he said. "If you want me to do something, I'm absolutely willing to listen, but I've got to feel that the odds of success are high."

What he’s currently doing — and loving

Since departing Fox News, O’Reilly has hosted a podcast on his website, BillOReilly.com, each weekday night. O’Reilly called the venture “extremely lucrative” and said he has “hundreds of thousands” of loyal subscribers. The operation is currently housed in his Long Island home, but will soon move into a studio in Manhattan.

O'Reilly said he loves his personal venture and explained he likes it more than TV because he can provide the content people want without the constraints of TV. For example, O'Reilly's famed "Talking Points Memo" segment had to be within three minutes at Fox News. Now, he said, the segment is upward of 20 minutes in length. "[T]he people like that. They want that kind of analysis not interrupted by guests," he said.

In fact, O'Reilly said he doesn't miss TV. "This summer, I realized it was much nicer to be out in the ocean than it was to be in the studio," he said. He also welcomes the lack of chaos that has become cable news TV. "The business got really nasty," he said.

Other topics he discussed

• Trump's comments following the Charlottesville protests: O'Reilly said Trump made only one mistake post-Charlottesville. "I wrote a column for The Hill and said that Trump's mistake — and it was one — was that you can never under any circumstances equate Nazis with anyone else. It's a very simple thing, OK?"
• Fox News' ratings and Hurricane Harvey coverage: "Well, I'm not going to say anything bad about Fox News." However, O'Reilly said Fox's Harvey coverage was similar to other networks, which he believes is not good.
• His sexual misconduct allegations and discussions with the Murdochs: "I'm never going to comment on any of that stuff. My lawyers are going to deal with that, and I am never going to say anything."
• Being fired while on vacation in Europe: "It was purely a business decision. But the way it was done ... it was sad. That's the word, sad."
• That National Geographic chose not to turn "Killing Patton" into a TV movie: "Oh, because it's a Fox [company]. I don't blame them."
• Megyn Kelly at NBC: "I feel bad for her because it's the same old game; you build them up and tear them down. I mean, what has Megyn Kelly done wrong?"