Rosie O'Donnell Slams Lindsay Lohan Casting in Elizabeth Taylor Movie

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Did Lifetime make the right decision to cast Lindsay Lohan in an Elizabeth Taylor biopic?

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That was the question posed Tuesday morning by Matt Lauer to newly minted Today panelist Rosie O'Donnell and her partners, Donny Deutsch and Star Jones, on the "Today's Professionals" team. On Monday, the femme-skewed network announced that Lohan will play Taylor in Liz & Dick, a movie based Taylor's romance with Richard Burton.

"I feel very sorry for her," said O'Donnell, quickly chiming in on her first day on the job. "I think she needs a lot of time away. ... She's had a lot of trouble doing every single movie, including SNL. She was out and not in rehearsal. I think she's not in a place to work."

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Jones continued that sentiment, saying Lohan was very talented but she hadn't seen enough of her work as an actress to make an evaluation. To which Deutsch responded: "She's our generation's Elizabeth Taylor!"

Then O'Donnell got fired up.

"You're out of your mind! You're a crackhead! The last thing she did good she was sixteen," she said.

Deutsch, an advertising exec-turned-TV pundit, said he thought she was good for the part because she'd bring attention to it, and do well channeling the late screen icon.

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"I don't think she's right for the role and I don't think she's capable at this point to portray that character," O'Donnell added.

Lifetime's Lohan casting is the latest move in her Hollywood comeback since she hosted Saturday Night Live last month to mixed reviews. Best known for her tabloid antics and her breakout rule in 2004's Mean Girls, Lohan will also make a guest appearance on Fox's Glee as a judge for the show's Nationals competition. Production on Liz & Dick begins in early June in Los Angeles.

O'Donnell recently parted ways with Oprah Winfrey's OWN with the cancellation of her five-month-old talk show.