Rodner Figueroa is marking three years of reinvention with Cara a Cara con Rodner, the podcast that helped him rebuild his career outside traditional television. But the anniversary comes with an unexpected twist: more than a decade after his highly publicized firing from Univision, the Venezuelan presenter is preparing to appear on the network's screens again.
Figueroa has been announced as part of the on-air talent for "Unidos por Venezuela," the benefit concert and international telethon that will air Sunday, Aug. 16, from Miami's Kaseya Center across TelevisaUnivision and iHeartLatino platforms. The event will raise money for families and communities affected by the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela in June.
For Figueroa, the appearance carries particular weight.
Univision was the network where he became one of Spanish-language television's most recognizable entertainment personalities, working on programs including El Gordo y La Flaca and Sal y Pimienta. It was also the network that fired him in March 2015 after he made an offensive comparison involving then-first lady Michelle Obama during a segment about makeup artist Paolo Ballesteros. Univision said at the time that his remarks were "completely reprehensible" and did not reflect the network's values. Figueroa later apologized publicly.
Now, 11 years later, he will return to a Univision broadcast in a very different role and at a very different point in his career.
Rodner Figueroa's return comes through Venezuela
The circumstances of the return are especially significant because Figueroa has become one of the entertainment figures most publicly involved in fundraising for Venezuela following the June earthquakes.
He serves as vice president of We Love Foundation, which moved quickly after the disaster to launch a fundraising campaign and channel donations through organizations working inside Venezuela. Figueroa used his platforms to urge followers to contribute, saying the foundation wanted to guarantee that donations reached areas where they were most urgently needed.
The effort has since grown substantially. Figueroa and people associated with the campaign have said We Love Foundation has raised more than $6 million for earthquake victims, according to recent social media updates promoting the initiative.
That humanitarian work now intersects directly with his television history.
"Unidos por Venezuela" is being organized by CMN, Maestro Cares Foundation, TelevisaUnivision and PIMIENTO Entertainment, with additional support from organizations including iHeartRadio and Spotify. The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Aug. 16 and will feature more than 30 artists and television personalities.
The announced musical lineup includes Marc Anthony, Ricardo Montaner, Feid, Jay Wheeler, Elena Rose, Silvestre Dangond, Gente de Zona, Mau y Ricky, Olga Tañón and Lasso, among others.
Three years of 'Cara a Cara'
The timing also coincides with the third anniversary of Cara a Cara con Rodner, a project Figueroa has described as much more than a career pivot.
"A veces hay que atreverse a comenzar de nuevo para descubrir todo lo que todavía somos capaces de construir," he wrote on Instagram while reflecting on the anniversary.
Figueroa said he launched the podcast after a long television career and a period of profound personal and professional transformation. He described needing to rediscover himself, recover his voice and find a new purpose.
"This podcast didn't just transform my career. It transformed me," he wrote.
The format centers on intimate conversations with celebrities and ordinary people who have faced difficult experiences and turned them into personal or professional change. Apple Podcasts lists more than 200 episodes of the show, which continues to publish weekly.
Its reach has also become substantial enough to establish Figueroa as a digital personality independent of traditional television. Cara a Cara attracts more than 5 million viewers each month and has accumulated more than 500,000 subscribers.
Figueroa thanked his guests, his business partner and executive producer Laura del Campillo, his production team, and the audience that helped turn the project into a second act.
"Never is it too late to reinvent yourself, believe in yourself again and start over," he wrote.
From Univision to Telemundo and then on his own
Figueroa's path back toward a Univision screen has been anything but linear.
After his 2015 dismissal, he spent more than two years largely absent from television before joining Telemundo's Al Rojo Vivo in 2017. He remained with the network for approximately five years before leaving in November 2022.
The following year, he increasingly focused on projects he controlled himself, including his fashion business and Cara a Cara.
That reinvention has now earned another sign of recognition. Figueroa was included in People en Español's 2026 "Los 50 Más Bellos", appearing in the publication's category celebrating personalities from television, reality programming and video podcasts.
The magazine specifically highlighted his evolution from fashion commentator into podcast host, designer and entrepreneur, while citing the audience he has built through Cara a Cara.
That makes the coming days unusually symbolic.
Figueroa is celebrating the project he built after traditional television stopped being the center of his professional life. He has been selected among People en Español's most prominent Latino personalities of the year. His foundation is helping raise millions for his home country.
And on Aug. 16, Rodner Figueroa will once again appear on Univision, the network where one chapter of his career ended so abruptly more than a decade ago.
This time, his return will not be about fashion criticism or celebrity news. It will be tied to the cause that has occupied much of his public life since Venezuela's earthquakes: helping his country recover.
