EXCLUSIVE: Nancy O'Dell responds to Billy Bush's apology for taped comments


Nancy O'Dell has responded to Billy Bush's apology.

The ET host addressed the former Today co-host's recent comments regarding the infamous Donald Trump Access Hollywood tape, where her then-colleague Bush can be heard laughing along while Trump describes inappropriate behavior toward women.

"Billy reached out to me just about three weeks ago by email. He wrote a really nice apology, which I appreciated very much," O'Dell shared on Monday's ET. "He and I worked together for so many years, for a long time, and I only wish him the best moving forward."

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Bush broke his silence over the release of the 2005 recording in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter on Sunday, noting that reliving the experience leaves him feeling "totally and completely gutted."

"Looking back upon what was said on that bus, I wish I had changed the topic," Bush admitted. "[Trump] liked TV and competition. I could've said, 'Can you believe the ratings on whatever?' But I didn't have the strength of character to do it."

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Bush continued to add that the hardest part was explaining the tape to one of his daughters.

"My then-15-year-old, Mary, called me from boarding school, and she was in tears: 'Dad, Dad, Dad,' and I said, 'Everything is going to be fine, Mary. Everything's going to be OK.' It's just instinctively what you say to your daughter," Bush recounted. "And she said, 'No, why were you laughing at the things that he was saying on that bus, Dad? They weren't funny.'"

WATCH: Melania Trump Blames Billy Bush for Egging Donald Trump On in Lewd 2005 Tape

"It hit really hard, and I stopped for a second, and I said, 'I have no answer for that that's any good. I am really sorry. That was Dad in a bad moment a long time ago. You know me. I am really sorry that you had to hear and see that. I love you,'" he continued.

"I found myself in a place of soul-searching," Bush said of his months out of a job since the tape was released. "And I developed a commitment to become a better, fuller man."

WATCH: What's Next for Billy Bush?


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