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Kathy Griffin declares herself 'uncanceled,' says she was ahead of her time with bloody Trump photo
By Madison Colombo
Published February 12, 2026
Comedian Kathy Griffin declared herself "uncanceled" in an interview with NPR affiliate WUSF on Thursday — standing by a photo she posted, years prior, of a bloodied, severed head resembling President Donald Trump.
In the interview with WUSF, Griffin reflected on the backlash that derailed her career and said audiences are now ready to welcome her back.
After Griffin posted the controversial photo in 2017 of her holding a Halloween mask covered in fake blood that appeared to resemble Trump, members of both parties condemned the photo, accusing it of promoting violence against an elected official.
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Kathy Griffin attends the 2025 Out100 Celebration at Nya Studios in Los Angeles, California, on Nov. 21. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Out.com)
"Oh, I think I'm uncanceled, which is a miracle to me, because I didn't think I would ever be uncanceled," Griffin said in the WUSF interview.
"It's more special now that I'm not canceled for me to go back to Tampa, because I haven't played Tampa in a really long time," she added.
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Kathy Griffin attends the Los Angeles premiere of "Infinite Icon: A Visual Memoir" at AMC The Grove 14 on Jan. 20, in Los Angeles, California. (Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Griffin initially apologized for the image before later retracting the apology and saying she did not regret posting it.
"People still define me by it. Now, I really own it, and I absolutely lean into it, because I was right, and I was ahead of my time," Griffin said.
"And so, when I look at that picture now, I'm very proud of it," she continued.
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Kathy Griffin attends the 35th Annual Environmental Media Association (EMA) Awards at the Radford Studio Center in Studio City, California, on Oct. 11. (Michael Tran/AFP via Getty Images)
Griffin said Trump acted "like he was scared of me" long before the photo was posted. She added, "He would put four fingers up like a cross, and go, ‘Oh, here she comes. She's gonna be tough on me. Don’t make fun of the hair.’"
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Griffin is set to kick off her "New Face, New Tour" show in Orlando on Thursday, saying audiences now give her standing ovations "before I even go out."
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