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  • Jimmy Kimmel explains how he learned he was being yanked off the air — and thought he’d never return

    When ABC executives told Jimmy Kimmel last month that his show was being pulled off the air, the late-night show’s audience was seated, a guest chef had already started making food, the musical guest had performed a warm-up act, and Kimmel was in the bathroom.”It was about 3:00; we tape our show at 4:30,” Kimmel told Stephen Colbert on an episode of “The Late Show” Tuesday. “I’m in my office, typing away as I usually do. I get a phone call. It’s ABC. They say they want to talk to me. This is unusual: They, as far as I knew, didn’t even know I was doing a show previous to this.”Kimmel said he had five writers in his office at the time, and the only private place where he could take the call was the bathroom.”So I go into the bathroom, and I’m on the phone with the ABC executives. and they say, ‘Listen, we want to take the temperature down. We’re concerned about what you’re going to say tonight, and we decided that the best route is to take the show off the air.’”The audience booed, and Kimmel joked: “That’s what I said: I started booing.””I said, ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea,’ and they said, ‘Well, we think it’s a good idea.’ Then there was a vote, and I lost the vote.”Kimmel said he called some of the show’s executive producers into his office to share the news, and he turned white.”I thought, that’s it. It’s over, it’s over. I was like, I’m never coming back on the air.”Kimmel said the show had to send the seated audience home. Chef Christian Petroni’s prepared meatballs and polenta that he had been cooking before the taping went to waste. Future musical guest Howard Jones, however, taped a song for a future episode: “Things Can Only Get Better,” which Kimmel acknowledged was ironic.ABC suspended Kimmel’s show in mid-September for a few days after a controversial monologue that mentioned Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer – and the right-wing reaction to Kirk’s murder. Two days later, FCC Chair Brendan Carr, on a conservative podcast, threatened to pull ABC affiliate broadcast licenses in response. Then Nexstar — the station group which airs “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in approximately two dozen markets — announced they would not air the show. Another affiliate, Sinclair, followed suit. And hours later, Kimmel took ABC executives’ call in the bathroom.Kimmel returned to the air the following Tuesday with an emotional monologue — and mega-ratings.Colbert couldn’t get the line outColbert, who also appeared as a guest on Brooklyn taping of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” Tuesday, said he could empathize with Kimmel. The CBS star said executives had made the decision to end his show while Colbert was on vacation. His manager, James Dixon, whom he shares with Kimmel, waited until Colbert returned to share the news.Recounting his desire to tell his audience about the news immediately — despite the fact that “Late Night” is set to run through the spring of 2026 — Colbert told Kimmel that at the end of the following show, he asked his audience to remain in their seats for one more segment. But he had trouble delivering his lines and flubbed the line — twice.”I was so nervous about doing it right, ’cause there was nothing in the prompter. I was just speaking off the cuff,” Colbert said. “They started going, ‘Come on Stephen, you can do it,” because I always messed up on the sentence that told them what was happening. And then I got to the sentence that actually told them what’s happening, and they didn’t laugh.”Although CBS owner Paramount said the cancellation of “The Late Show” was strictly a business decision, many media critics — and Kimmel — questioned that rationale, and some have said it was likely a political decision to appease the Trump administration that needed to approve Paramount’s merger with Skydance.Both Colbert and Kimmel have been frequent and unabashed critics of President Donald Trump and his administration. Trump publicly celebrated when Colbert was canceled, saying in a social media post that Kimmel and NBC’s Seth Meyers were “next.” Trump again celebrated when Kimmel was pulled off the air but criticized — and threatened — ABC when it brought him back on.Meyers made an appearance on Kimmel’s show Tuesday, and the three late night hosts posed for a photograph posted to Instagram. Kimmel added the caption: “Hi Donald!”Kimmel joked with Colbert that Tuesday’s taping was, “The show the FCC doesn’t want you to see.” He introduced Colbert as, “The Emmy-winning late-night talk show host who, thanks to the Trump administration, is now available for a limited-time only.”Kimmel quipped that he was “so honored to be here with my fellow no-talent, late-night loser.” As for the rationale for inviting Colbert onto his program: “We thought it might be a fun way to drive the president nuts.”

    CNN —

    When ABC executives told Jimmy Kimmel last month that his show was being pulled off the air, the late-night show’s audience was seated, a guest chef had already started making food, the musical guest had performed a warm-up act, and Kimmel was in the bathroom.

    “It was about 3:00; we tape our show at 4:30,” Kimmel told Stephen Colbert on an episode of “The Late Show” Tuesday. “I’m in my office, typing away as I usually do. I get a phone call. It’s ABC. They say they want to talk to me. This is unusual: They, as far as I knew, didn’t even know I was doing a show previous to this.”

    Kimmel said he had five writers in his office at the time, and the only private place where he could take the call was the bathroom.

    “So I go into the bathroom, and I’m on the phone with the ABC executives. and they say, ‘Listen, we want to take the temperature down. We’re concerned about what you’re going to say tonight, and we decided that the best route is to take the show off the air.’”

    The audience booed, and Kimmel joked: “That’s what I said: I started booing.”

    “I said, ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea,’ and they said, ‘Well, we think it’s a good idea.’ Then there was a vote, and I lost the vote.”

    Kimmel said he called some of the show’s executive producers into his office to share the news, and he turned white.

    “I thought, that’s it. It’s over, it’s over. I was like, I’m never coming back on the air.”

    Kimmel said the show had to send the seated audience home. Chef Christian Petroni’s prepared meatballs and polenta that he had been cooking before the taping went to waste. Future musical guest Howard Jones, however, taped a song for a future episode: “Things Can Only Get Better,” which Kimmel acknowledged was ironic.

    ABC suspended Kimmel’s show in mid-September for a few days after a controversial monologue that mentioned Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer – and the right-wing reaction to Kirk’s murder. Two days later, FCC Chair Brendan Carr, on a conservative podcast, threatened to pull ABC affiliate broadcast licenses in response. Then Nexstar — the station group which airs “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in approximately two dozen markets — announced they would not air the show. Another affiliate, Sinclair, followed suit. And hours later, Kimmel took ABC executives’ call in the bathroom.

    Kimmel returned to the air the following Tuesday with an emotional monologue — and mega-ratings.

    Colbert couldn’t get the line out

    Colbert, who also appeared as a guest on Brooklyn taping of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” Tuesday, said he could empathize with Kimmel. The CBS star said executives had made the decision to end his show while Colbert was on vacation. His manager, James Dixon, whom he shares with Kimmel, waited until Colbert returned to share the news.

    Recounting his desire to tell his audience about the news immediately — despite the fact that “Late Night” is set to run through the spring of 2026 — Colbert told Kimmel that at the end of the following show, he asked his audience to remain in their seats for one more segment. But he had trouble delivering his lines and flubbed the line — twice.

    “I was so nervous about doing it right, ’cause there was nothing in the prompter. I was just speaking off the cuff,” Colbert said. “They started going, ‘Come on Stephen, you can do it,” because I always messed up on the sentence that told them what was happening. And then I got to the sentence that actually told them what’s happening, and they didn’t laugh.”

    Although CBS owner Paramount said the cancellation of “The Late Show” was strictly a business decision, many media critics — and Kimmel — questioned that rationale, and some have said it was likely a political decision to appease the Trump administration that needed to approve Paramount’s merger with Skydance.

    Both Colbert and Kimmel have been frequent and unabashed critics of President Donald Trump and his administration. Trump publicly celebrated when Colbert was canceled, saying in a social media post that Kimmel and NBC’s Seth Meyers were “next.” Trump again celebrated when Kimmel was pulled off the air but criticized — and threatened — ABC when it brought him back on.

    Meyers made an appearance on Kimmel’s show Tuesday, and the three late night hosts posed for a photograph posted to Instagram. Kimmel added the caption: “Hi Donald!”

    Kimmel joked with Colbert that Tuesday’s taping was, “The show the FCC doesn’t want you to see.” He introduced Colbert as, “The Emmy-winning late-night talk show host who, thanks to the Trump administration, is now available for a limited-time only.”

    Kimmel quipped that he was “so honored to be here with my fellow no-talent, late-night loser.” As for the rationale for inviting Colbert onto his program: “We thought it might be a fun way to drive the president nuts.”

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  • Nexstar And Sinclair Bring Jimmy Kimmel’s Show Back On Local TV Stations, Ending Boycotts – KXL

    NEW YORK (AP) — Nexstar Media Group joined Sinclair Broadcast Group in bringing Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show back to its local TV stations on Friday night, ending a dayslong TV blackout for dozens of cities across the U.S.

    The companies suspended the program over remarks the comedian made in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s killing. The move means “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will return to local TV on Nexstar’s ABC affiliates in 28 cities, along with the 38 stations where Sinclair agreed to restore the show.

    The show will also return to Sinclair’s local TV markets from Seattle to Washington, D.C.

    Disney-owned ABC suspended Kimmel on Sept. 17, following threats of potential repercussions from the Trump-appointed head of the Federal Communications Commission. Sinclair also condemned the host — confirming that it would stop airing the show the same day.

    The Maryland-based broadcast giant, which is known for conservative political content, called on Kimmel at the time to apologize to Kirk’s family — and taking it a step further, asked him to “make a meaningful personal donation” to Turning Point USA, the nonprofit that Kirk founded.

    On the day Kirk was killed, Kimmel shared a message of support for Kirk’s family and other victims of gun violence on social media, which he reiterated during his Tuesday return to ABC. He had also called the conservative activist’s assassination a “senseless murder” prior to being taken off air.

    Kimmel’s original comments didn’t otherwise focus on Kirk. He instead lambasted President Donald Trump and his administration’s response to the killing. The comedian did not apologize on Tuesday, but did say “it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man” and acknowledged that to some, his comments “felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both.”

    He also used a blend of humor and pointed messages to emphasize the importance of free speech.

    Even after Disney brought Kimmel back to its national airways, both Sinclair and Nexstar continued to preempt the show.

    New episodes of the show air Monday through Thursday. Friday night’s rerun will be of Tuesday’s show — so viewers of Sinclair stations can see Kimmel’s emotional return to the air.

    In its statement Friday, Sinclair pointed to its “responsibility as local broadcasters to provide programming that serves the interests of our communities, while also honoring our obligations to air national network programming.”

    The company, which operates 38 ABC-affiliated stations, added that it had received “thoughtful feedback from viewers, advertisers and community leaders representing a wide range of perspectives,” and noticed “troubling acts of violence,” referencing the shooting into the lobby of a Sacramento station.

    “These events underscore why responsible broadcasting matters and why respectful dialogue between differing voices remains so important,” Sinclair added.

    As a result of Sinclair and Nexstar’s boycott, viewers in cities representing roughly a quarter of ABC’s local TV affiliates had been left without the late-night program on local TV. The blackouts escalated nationwide uproar around First Amendment protections — particularly as the Trump administration and other conservatives police speech after Kirk’s killing. They also cast a spotlight on political influence in the media landscape, with critics lambasting companies that they accuse of censoring content.

    Ahead of his suspension, Kimmel took aim at the president and his “MAGA gang” of supporters for their response to Kirk’s killing, which Kimmel said included “finger-pointing” and attempts to characterize the alleged shooter as “anything other than one of them.”

    These remarks angered many supporters of Kirk — as well as FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who accused Kimmel of appearing to “directly mislead the American public” with his remarks about the man accused of the killing. Ahead of Kimmel’s suspension, Carr warned that Disney and ABC’s local affiliates could face repercussions if the comedian was not punished.

    He later applauded Sinclair, as well as Nexstar, for their decisions to preempt the show.

    On Sept. 17, Sinclair Vice Chairman Jason Smith called Kimmel’s comments “inappropriate and deeply insensitive” and said that ABC’s suspension wasn’t enough. Smith added that Sinclair appreciated Carr’s comments — and called for “immediate regulatory action” from the FCC “to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks.”

    Still, in Friday’s announcement, Sinclair maintained that its decision to preempt Kimmel’s show was “independent of any government interaction or influence,” Sinclair’s statement Friday read, adding that broadcasters had the right to exercise their own judgment.

    While local TV affiliates broadcast their own programming, such as local news, they also contract with larger national broadcasters — and pay them to air their national content, splitting advertising revenue and fees from cable companies.

    Sinclair said “constructive” discussions with ABC were ongoing, and said its proposals to the network to strengthen accountability, feedback and dialogue and appoint an ombudsman had not yet been adopted.

    Representatives for ABC declined to comment on Friday.

    Matthew Dolgin, senior equity analyst at research firm Morningstar, said he wasn’t surprised by Sinclair’s decision.

    “The relationship with Disney is far too important for these firms to risk,” Dolgin said. And setting aside legal rights from either side, he added, “Disney would’ve been free to take its affiliate agreements elsewhere in 2026 if these relationships were too difficult. That scenario would be devastating to Nexstar and Sinclair.”

    Jordan Vawter

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  • Jimmy Kimmel Makes STRONG Late-Night Return With Messages Of Freedom & Unity – WATCH! – Perez Hilton

    Jimmy Kimmel is back on the air!

    The late-night TV host marked Tuesday night as his return to the airwaves after that abrupt suspension last week following comments he made about the death of conservative political pundit Charlie Kirk.

    Fans have been waiting to see what would happen upon the return of Jimmy Kimmel Live! to ABC. And even though Tuesday’s comeback wasn’t aired on all ABC affiliates across the country, the episode still marked a momentous occasion for Jimmy, his staff, and his viewers — oh, and social media users, too, of course.

    Related: John Oliver BLASTS ‘Cowards’ At ABC & Disney Over Kimmel Suspension!

    Tuesday night’s guests were actor Glen Powell and musical guest Sarah McLachlan. And look, no shade intended towards them, but… nobody was there to see them do their thing. Nahhhh, everybody tuned in to see what Kimmel would say about getting pulled off air!

    So, without further ado, here we go…

    Kimmel entered the studio to ROARING applause, with the audience giving him a standing ovation, chanting “Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy,” and more. See for yourself:

    He thanked them for their support, then started his comeback monologue by joking:

    “If you’re just joining us, we are preempting a regularly scheduled encore episode of Celebrity Family Feud to bring you this special report.

    The 57-year-old comedian then referenced RFK Jr.’s “autism announcement” that was dropped on Monday, quipping:

    “I’m not sure who had a weirder 48 hours, me or the CEO of Tylenol.”

    By the way, experts have largely refuted the MAHA claim that the only doctor-approved painkiller for pregnant women is a cause for autism, but we digress…

    He continued:

    “It’s been overwhelming. I’ve heard from a lot of people over the last six days. I’ve heard from all the people all over the world, over the last reached out 10 or 11 times, weird characters from my past, or the guy who fired me from my first radio job in Seattle, not airing tonight by the way.”

    He also thanked right wing voices like Ted Cruz‘s that warned against such retaliation and what it means for the first amendment.

    “It takes courage for them to speak out against this administration. They did and they deserve credit for it.”

    Kimmel then made it extremely clear his intention was to never make light of Kirk’s death, saying:

    “I have no illusions about changing anyone’s mind, but I do want to make something clear, because it’s important to me as a human and that is, you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man. I don’t think there’s anything funny about it. Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what it was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make.”

    Remember, he never actually made a joke about the death of Kirk. In fact, he strongly condemned the assassination the day it happened and sent his sincere condolences to the family. No, he was pulled over his comments about the gunman and the right wing reaction to it all.

    Regardless, he still knows it was wrong and unAmerican for ABC affiliates to respond the way they did, calling out Donald Trump‘s FCC Chairman Brendan Carr for publicly saying the network would get pressure regarding Kimmel’s comments when Carr said, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” and “These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”

    Overall the entire monologue was a poignant message of unity for all Americans and our first amendment rights. It was also one for healing. He ended on a note about Erika Kirk‘s speech from the podcaster’s memorial service on Sunday, specifically her public forgiveness for the gunman. Kimmel said that’s what the teachings of Jesus Christ are all about it — forgiveness. Through tears he admitted it touched him deeply, saying “if there is anything we should take from this tragedy, it’s that.”

    Watch it all for yourself (below):

    BTW, Jimmy Kimmel Live! will welcome Ethan Hawke, Lisa Ann Walter, and musical guest Yungblud on Wednesday. Then, on Thursday, Peyton Manning, Oscar Nuñez, and musical guest Alex G will show out.

    Reactions, y’all?? Drop ’em (below)!

    [Image via Jimmy Kimmel Live/YouTube]

    Perez Hilton

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  • Jimmy Kimmel’s show to remain off dozens of U.S. stations despite return – National | Globalnews.ca

    The owners of dozens of U.S. television stations say they will continue to keep Jimmy Kimmel Live! off their airwaves despite Disney announcing the late-night comedian’s show will return from a days-long suspension Tuesday.

    Nexstar Media Group, which operates 28 stations affiliated with Disney-owned ABC across the U.S., said Tuesday it will pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel’s show, noting in a statement that the program “will be available nationwide on multiple Disney-owned streaming products.”

    “We made a decision last week to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! following what ABC referred to as Mr. Kimmel’s ‘ill-timed and insensitive’ comments at a critical time in our national discourse,” Nexstar’s statement said.

    “We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve.”

    The statement comes after Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns 38 other ABC affiliates, said Monday it will pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel Live! on its own stations, replacing the show with news programming.

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    “Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return,” the company said in a statement.

    ABC, which suspended Kimmel’s show last Wednesday following criticism of his comments about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, announced Monday that Kimmel’s show would return after the network had “thoughtful conversations” with the host.

    Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan is set to appear on Kimmel’s first show back, publicists for both the musician and her Hulu-distributed Lilith Fair documentary have confirmed.

    Disney also announced Tuesday it was increasing subscription costs for its streaming platforms Disney+ and Hulu in the U.S. by between $2 and $7 a month. It did not announce similar price hikes in Canada.

    Several consumers said on social media they were cancelling their Disney streaming subscriptions in the wake of Kimmel’s suspension.


    Click to play video: 'Jimmy Kimmel suspension stokes U.S. media censorships fears'


    Jimmy Kimmel suspension stokes U.S. media censorships fears


    The suspension was announced hours after Nexstar said it would pre-empt the show due to Kimmel’s “offensive and insensitive” remarks in the opening monologue of his Sept. 15 broadcast.

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    Sinclair followed suit and said it would only return Jimmy Kimmel Live! to its affiliate’s airwaves after Kimmel apologizes to Kirk’s family and makes a “meaningful personal donation” to Kirk’s organization Turning Point USA.

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    Andrew Kolvet, a spokesperson for Turning Point USA, posted on X that “Disney and ABC caving and allowing Kimmel back on the air is not surprising, but it’s their mistake to make.” He later applauded Sinclair for upholding its decision to block Kimmel’s show and said affiliates “have every right to demand accountability” from the comedian, who he called “an unrepentant liar.”

    Kimmel has not yet addressed his show’s suspension or its return.

    Nexstar and Sinclair’s announcements last week came after Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, said on a podcast last Wednesday that Kimmel was trying to “directly mislead the American public” and suggested the FCC could take action.

    “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said. “These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”


    Click to play video: 'Protests target Disney after Jimmy Kimmel pulled from air'


    Protests target Disney after Jimmy Kimmel pulled from air


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    Those remarks set a backlash in motion, with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas saying that Carr acted like “a mafioso.” Hundreds of entertainment luminaries, including Tom Hanks, Barbra Streisand and Jennifer Aniston, signed a letter circulated by the American Civil Liberties Union that called ABC’s move “a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation.”

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    Since Kimmel’s suspension, however, Carr has framed the situation as an organic uprising of local affiliates against national media companies to control the content they air.

    “Notably, this is the first time recently that any local TV stations have pushed back on a national programmer like Disney,” he wrote on X on Tuesday. “And that is a good thing because we want want empowered local TV stations. After all, local TV stations—not the national programmers—have public interest obligations, and they should be making decisions that in their view meets the needs of their local communities.”


    Carr has also accused Democrats and critics who say he exerted government pressure to limit Kimmel’s free speech of “distortion” and “projection.”

    “Jimmy Kimmel is in the situation that he’s in because of his ratings, not because of anything that has happened at the federal government level,” Carr said during a conversation at the Concordia Summit in New York on Monday, before Disney announced Kimmel’s return to the air.

    Nexstar owns or partners with more than 200 stations in 116 U.S. markets, and owns broadcast networks the CW and NewsNation, as well as the political website The Hill and nearly a third of the Food Network. Its ABC-affiliated stations operate in cities including Nashville, New Orleans, Salt Lake City and smaller markets including Evansville, Ind., and Binghamton, N.Y., among others.

    Last month, it announced a $6.2 billion deal to buy TEGNA Inc., which owns 64 other TV stations.

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    The deal would require the FCC to change rules limiting the number of stations a single company can own. Carr has expressed openness to changing the rule.

    Sinclair owns, operates or provides services to 178 TV stations in 81 markets affiliated with all major broadcast networks and owns the Tennis Channel. Its ABC affiliates include stations in Washington, D.C., Portland, Ore., Chattanooga, Tennessee, and other cities.

    The company has also petitioned the FCC to relax its rules limiting broadcaster ownership of stations.

    Disney, meanwhile, needs approval from the Trump administration for its ESPN division to complete an acquisition of the NFL Network.

    With files from the Associated Press

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    Sean Boynton

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  • Nexstar says it will continue to preempt




































    Jimmy Kimmel set to return to air



    Jimmy Kimmel set to return to air amid intense free speech debate

    02:58

    Nexstar Media on Tuesday said it will continue to preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on its television stations when the late-night show returns tonight after an almost week-long hiatus on ABC. 

    Nexstar’s move parallels that of local TV station owner Sinclair, which on Monday said it would also continue to preempt the show after it returns to ABC. Both Nexstar and Sinclair own ABC-affiliated television stations.

    On Tuesday, Nexstar said it will “monitor the show as it returns to ABC.”

    Last week, ABC had indefinitely preempted the show following comments Kimmel made on the show in response to the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The decisions by Nexstar and Sinclair, two of the largest owners of TV affiliates, mean “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” won’t appear tonight on dozens of ABC stations in cities across the U.S. 

    At the same time, Nexstar has a $6.2 billion deal pending to purchase Tegna, a smaller rival, and requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission to move forward with the acquisition.

    Last week, a Nexstar spokesperson told CBS News that the decision was “made unilaterally by the senior executive team at Nexstar, and they had no communication with the FCC or any government agency prior to making that decision.”

    Nextar operates 29 ABC affiliates, with its largest ABC market represented by WKRN-TV in Nashville. Sinclair runs about 40 ABC stations, including KOMO-TV in Seattle. 

    Aimee Picchi

    Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.

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  • Disney Stars Join Calls to Boycott and Cancel Subscriptions

    Photo: Middle East Images/AFP via Getty

    ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! on September 17 after Nexstar, the largest television-station owner in the country, promised to pull it over Kimmel’s comments on Charlie Kirk’s death. In response, some people are now pulling their support for ABC and parent company Disney. The WGA, SAG-AFTRA, and celebrities across Hollywood have all spoken up in support of Kimmel, and in-person protests are happening on both coasts. Meanwhile, some creatives with ties to Disney are speaking out: Lost creator Damon Lindelof announced on September 18 that he will not work for Disney until Jimmy Kimmel Live! returns, while She-Hulk star Tatiana Maslany has endorsed a boycott of Disney+ and Hulk Mark Ruffalo points out the economic impact. Stars from other studios, like Cynthia Nixon, Noah Centineo, and more, are showing their support as well by cancelling their subs.

    Hundreds of WGA and SAG-AFTRA members picketed outside Disney’s headquarters in Burbank on September 18, displaying signs with messages including “ABC Bends the Knee to Fascism” and “This is literally what your show Andor is about!” On the same day, picketers also gathered outside of El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, where Kimmel tapes his show. “Here Comes Hitler: A New Comedy From ABC,” one sign read. Several other signs encouraged people to cancel their subscriptions to Disney+ and Hulu.

    About 100 people also gathered in front of ABC’s New York headquarters where the crowd chanted “Kimmel stays, Trump must go” and “ABC, grow a spine,” per Variety. Assemblymember Alex Bores said in a speech that it is “un-American” for the government to take someone off the air “because of political speech.” And there are plans for more picketing: The Writers Guild of America East announced that it will protest outside the entrance to ABC’s offices in Manhattan on Friday to “demand ABC bring back Jimmy Kimmel Live! and to fight to protect free speech.”

    The Hulk actor quoted a post about how Disney’s stock is reportedly down 7% and points out how much worse it can get financially. He writes, “It’s going to go down a lot further if they cancel his show. Disney does not want to be the ones that broke America.”

    Nixon shared a video of herself canceling her Hulu and Disney+ subscription in solidarity with Kimmel. She explained how she let the streamers know the reasoning behind her decision. The HBO star said, “They asked me why and I hit other and I wrote, ‘Because I believe in the First Amendment, reinstate Jimmy Kimmel now.’” She then named Abbott Elementary and Only Murders in the Building as shows her family would miss but they would miss the First Amendment more.

    While it looks like Centineo might’ve bought a Disney+ subscription just to cancel it, he’s standing in solidarity with the boycott. How else is The Fosters star supposed to participate if he didn’t have a subscription to begin with?

    The Supernatural actor posted that he will be canceling his Disney+ subscription “indefinitely,” following the same language as the original Kimmel suspension.

    Maslany, who plays the titular role in Disney+’s She-Hulk, encouraged more than half a million followers to cancel their subscriptions to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN in a September 18 Instagram Story.

    While calls to boycott Disney have spread, including from action group 50501, Lindelof is the first creative to publicly threaten to boycott working with the company entirely until Jimmy Kimmel Live! returns. “I was shocked, saddened and infuriated by yesterday’s suspension and look forward to it being lifted soon,” Lindelof wrote in a September 18 Instagram post. “If it isn’t, I can’t in good conscience work for the company that imposed it. If you’re about to fire up in my comments, just ask yourself if you know the difference between hate speech and a joke. I think you still do.”

    The Watchmen creator also emphasized his friendship to Kimmel and faith in the host’s patriotism. “I met him for the first time backstage at the ABC upfronts in 2004,” Lindelof wrote. “He had just seen the Lost pilot and dug it. He also said, ‘I hope you guys know what you’re doing.’” He added that, “In the twenty years since, I’ve gotten to know Jimmy and if you know Jimmy, you know his incredible wife and head writer, Molly, who is not just his better half but his better three quarters. You also know he is caring and empathic and grateful. You know he loves his country.”

    Jason P. Frank

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  • What Is Disney Thinking?

    “If the goal was to simmer down the temperature, it didn’t. It became volcanic.”
    Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Getty Images

    Bob Iger and Disney are used to dealing with all manner of PR crises; it comes with the territory when you’re operating one of the best known and most beloved brands in the world. But what has happened with Jimmy Kimmel over the past 24 hours has been something far different (and scarier) than a mere public-relations kerfuffle: FCC chairman Brendan Carr, a MAGA loyalist, threatened to damage a key part of Disney’s broadcast-TV business if its ABC network didn’t “take action” against Kimmel to address his concerns over a few sentences from his September 15 episode that the right-wing outrage machine had deemed problematic. Within hours, ABC announced that Kimmel’s show was being pulled from its lineup “indefinitely,” his future at the network suddenly became unclear — and Iger’s legacy as CEO was very much at risk.

    Keep in mind the timeline of how this madness has played out: On Monday night, Kimmel delivered his monologue, which included a small, admittedly awkward sentence. On Tuesday, Fox News posted video from the monologue; by Wednesday morning, podcaster Benny Johnson, a key ally of the Trump White House, released a podcast with this YouTube subject line: “Jimmy Kimmel LIES About Charlie Kirk Killer, Blames Charlie For His Murder!? Disney Must Fire Kimmel.” The guest of honor on the pod: Carr, who said ABC could “do this the easy way or the hard way.” The rest played out in front of our eyes last night: Nexstar announced it was pulling Kimmel’s show, Sinclair quickly followed suit, and within 15 minutes, an ABC publicist was texting reporters its now-famous seven-word statement: “Jimmy Kimmel Live will be preempted indefinitely.”

    This story is far from over, and it is too soon to render judgment about What It All Means. As of Thursday afternoon, Kimmel’s show had not been canceled and he is still an employee of the Walt Disney Company, despite Donald Trump celebrating the comedian’s demise Wednesday night. Indeed, according to a person familiar with the matter, the whole purpose of ABC’s vague statement was to give the network, Kimmel, and ABC’s major-affiliated-station groups time to react to Carr’s threats in a way that ensured the show remained on the air. “There is a desire to find, and folks are working toward, what a path forward looks like for the show,” one Disney insider says of the company’s thinking. Another person familiar with the matter says that Iger and Disney TV boss Dana Walden jointly made the decision to cancel the show’s Wednesday taping, with Walden personally calling Kimmel to deliver the news. Sources say the talks between Kimmel and Disney continued on Thursday with the goal of finding a way for the host to get back on TV “as soon as possible.”

    All this may sound like spin from Disney, and if this ends with Kimmel leaving the network, that is surely how it will be interpreted in many quarters. The courts of social media and punditocracy have already — and somewhat understandably — charged and convicted ABC with bending the knee to the Trump administration. Whatever happens next, there is no taking back the decision to pull Kimmel’s show, for any length of time, in response to a coordinated, deliberate attack on him and ABC by Carr and right-wing influencers and podcasters.

    But you don’t have to excuse what Disney did Wednesday to accept the possibility that the purpose of its actions were not to punish Kimmel but to get through this crisis with Jimmy Kimmel Live! standing. One veteran Hollywood insider not connected to Disney said the utter blandness of ABC’s Wednesday statement is evidence that the company was winging it and essentially stalling for time. “There was not an ounce of spin in what they said,” this person says. “That means they had nothing to say that could please the government, their employees, the affiliates, or talent. And I don’t blame them. I probably would have done the same.”

    While folks on the right celebrated what they deemed a victory, ABC’s move ended up turning a story mostly limited to the right-wing information bubble into international news. Countless Democratic officials, including former president Barack Obama, denounced what had happened; cable news offered nonstop coverage for hours; creators threatened to boycott Disney unless Kimmel returned to the air; Jon Stewart decided he would host a special edition of The Daily Show Thursday to respond. “Now what you have is a cascading effect,” the veteran Hollywood exec says. “If the goal was to simmer down the temperature, it didn’t. It became volcanic.”

    Nobody should be pulling out the violins for Iger or Disney, but U.S. corporations do not have a ton of experience dealing with a government as ruthless and shameless at going after its targets as this Trump White House has been. While Trump’s bluster was plenty loud during his first term, folks like Carr literally wrote a playbook —  Project 2025 — on how to learn from the mistakes of that administration and better execute their vision of America. With Carr, networks now have not an objective regulator, or even someone with a partisan agenda, but something unprecedented in recent history: a mercenary who seems intent on using the regulatory state to serve the personal whims of the president. Trump perceives late-night comedians and network newscasters as his enemies; Carr has gone after both within his first year on the job.

    Even people outside Disney are shocked at what he has done. “Brendan Carr is drunk with power and glee,” a longtime TV-industry executive says. “He’s like the nerd who was bullied in high school, gets power, and has gone crazy with it.” Furthermore, a person familiar with the matter says that as right-wing outrage over Kimmel’s comments grew, employees inside ABC began getting threats to their personal safety. That has factored into Disney’s handling of the situation, a person with knowledge of the situation said.

    Still, it’s not as if Iger & Co. have not had time now to prepare for these sorts of incidents and devise a clear strategy to fight back. Even if this ends with Kimmel back on the air, Iger’s silence has caused at least some short-term damage to Disney’s brand and his personal image. He has long been regarded as among the most talent-friendly of CEOs, and Kimmel has been among the most loyal of Disney soldiers. Would it have really hurt the cause for Iger (or Walden) to come out with a statement Thursday morning defending Kimmel while showing sensitivity to Charlie Kirk’s death?

    But Disney clearly decided to play things safe and not add any fuel to the fire by saying anything until it decides what comes next. While nobody from Disney or Kimmel’s team would comment on Thursday afternoon, it seems likely the two sides have been in discussions about what, if anything, Kimmel needs to say to make ABC comfortable with putting him back on the air. (The show will remain off the air Thursday night.) Just as important, the network is likely in discussions with Nexstar and other affiliate groups about what they will require in order for them to resume airing Kimmel’s show. ABC would want to get both of them back onboard, but Nexstar — which is trying to get a huge merger deal approved by the FCC — in particular has proved it’s in full suck-up mode to Carr and Trump. “Nexstar saw all this as an opportunity to score points with the FCC,” an industry insider says. And with fellow affiliate group Sinclair joining the Kimmel pile on, it has even more leverage with Disney.

    That said, if ABC can come to an agreement with Kimmel over an appropriate response, Disney could, in theory, decide to just live with Nexstar and Sinclair boycotting Kimmel’s show. While it would mean some loss of ad revenue, it’s not as if late night is a giant profit center for networks; just the opposite. This isn’t 1995, or even 2005, where a Kimmel blackout in, say, 20 percent of the country would be a financial disaster. Much of Kimmel’s viewership now takes place on YouTube and Hulu. Disney could even go with a nuclear option and just make Jimmy Kimmel Live! a Hulu exclusive and let affiliates fill the hour with local news. CBS’s decision to cancel The Late Show With Stephen Colbert at the end of this season makes such a move even less risky, since it’s not as if ABC would be the lone big-three network without a late-night show.

    Regardless of the outcome, what is becoming sadly clear is that this will not be the last time big media companies are forced to deal with the MAGA machine moving swiftly, and with full government support, to achieve its goals. And broadcasters like ABC will keep butting up against this dynamic again and again because they program not only prime-time entertainment shows but topical talk series and newscasts. “It’s the worst time ever to be at a broadcast network, especially if you work in PR. Literally every day now, someone is going to say something,” the Hollywood veteran says. And while such controversies happened long before Trump, the mood in Hollywood is different now. “Before, when you had a backlash, it felt like social justice. Now, it feels like the full power of the U.S. government coming for you.”

    Josef Adalian

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  • ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ suspended after host’s Charlie Kirk comments

    “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has been suspended indefinitely by ABC, following his comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.According to an ABC network spokesperson, they are pulling the show indefinitely and plan to air “Celebrity Family Feud” for the next two nights in its place, with future programming to be determined.Nexstar was first to announce that it would no longer air Kimmel’s late-night show on its 23 ABC affiliates across the country. There was no immediate comment from Kimmel, whose contract is up in May 2026.In his monologue on Tuesday, Kimmel said that “we hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr appeared on a podcast Wednesday, where he suggested that local affiliates should pull Kimmel from the air.Later in the day, Carr posted on X, saying, “I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing. Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values. I hope that other broadcasters follow Nexstar’s lead.” Trump celebrated ABC’s move on the social media site Truth Social, writing: “Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.”He also targeted two other late-night hosts, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, and said they should be canceled too, calling them “two total losers.” In July, after CBS canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” Trump wrote on his social media platform: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!” Like Colbert, Kimmel has been consistently been critical of Trump and many of his policies.Kimmel’s show pulled as audience waited for tapingAn audience was lined up outside the theater where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tapes when they were told Wednesday’s show was canceled.“We were just about to walk in — interestingly enough, they waited to pull the plug on this right as the studio audience was about to walk in,” Tommy Williams, a would-be audience member from Jacksonville, Florida, told The Associated Press outside the theater. “They didn’t tell us what had happened. They just said that the show was canceled.”Williams said he was worried someone had been injured — until he saw that ABC had announced nearly at the same time online that the preemption was indefinite. Williams hadn’t been aware of Kimmel’s comments on Kirk, but sought them out after the announcement.

    “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has been suspended indefinitely by ABC, following his comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.

    According to an ABC network spokesperson, they are pulling the show indefinitely and plan to air “Celebrity Family Feud” for the next two nights in its place, with future programming to be determined.

    Nexstar was first to announce that it would no longer air Kimmel’s late-night show on its 23 ABC affiliates across the country.

    There was no immediate comment from Kimmel, whose contract is up in May 2026.

    In his monologue on Tuesday, Kimmel said that “we hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

    Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr appeared on a podcast Wednesday, where he suggested that local affiliates should pull Kimmel from the air.

    Later in the day, Carr posted on X, saying, “I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing. Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values. I hope that other broadcasters follow Nexstar’s lead.”

    Trump celebrated ABC’s move on the social media site Truth Social, writing: “Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.”

    He also targeted two other late-night hosts, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, and said they should be canceled too, calling them “two total losers.” In July, after CBS canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” Trump wrote on his social media platform: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!” Like Colbert, Kimmel has been consistently been critical of Trump and many of his policies.

    Kimmel’s show pulled as audience waited for taping

    An audience was lined up outside the theater where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tapes when they were told Wednesday’s show was canceled.

    “We were just about to walk in — interestingly enough, they waited to pull the plug on this right as the studio audience was about to walk in,” Tommy Williams, a would-be audience member from Jacksonville, Florida, told The Associated Press outside the theater. “They didn’t tell us what had happened. They just said that the show was canceled.”

    Williams said he was worried someone had been injured — until he saw that ABC had announced nearly at the same time online that the preemption was indefinite. Williams hadn’t been aware of Kimmel’s comments on Kirk, but sought them out after the announcement.

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  • ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ suspended after host’s Charlie Kirk comments

    “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has been suspended indefinitely by ABC, following his comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.According to an ABC network spokesperson, they are pulling the show indefinitely and plan to air “Celebrity Family Feud” for the next two nights in its place, with future programming to be determined.Nexstar was first to announce that it would no longer air Kimmel’s late-night show on its 23 ABC affiliates across the country. There was no immediate comment from Kimmel, whose contract is up in May 2026.In his monologue on Tuesday, Kimmel said that “we hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr appeared on a podcast Wednesday, where he suggested that local affiliates should pull Kimmel from the air.Later in the day, Carr posted on X, saying, “I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing. Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values. I hope that other broadcasters follow Nexstar’s lead.” Trump celebrated ABC’s move on the social media site Truth Social, writing: “Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.”He also targeted two other late-night hosts, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, and said they should be canceled too, calling them “two total losers.” In July, after CBS canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” Trump wrote on his social media platform: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!” Like Colbert, Kimmel has been consistently been critical of Trump and many of his policies.Kimmel’s show pulled as audience waited for tapingAn audience was lined up outside the theater where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tapes when they were told Wednesday’s show was canceled.“We were just about to walk in — interestingly enough, they waited to pull the plug on this right as the studio audience was about to walk in,” Tommy Williams, a would-be audience member from Jacksonville, Florida, told The Associated Press outside the theater. “They didn’t tell us what had happened. They just said that the show was canceled.”Williams said he was worried someone had been injured — until he saw that ABC had announced nearly at the same time online that the preemption was indefinite. Williams hadn’t been aware of Kimmel’s comments on Kirk, but sought them out after the announcement.

    “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has been suspended indefinitely by ABC, following his comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.

    According to an ABC network spokesperson, they are pulling the show indefinitely and plan to air “Celebrity Family Feud” for the next two nights in its place, with future programming to be determined.

    Nexstar was first to announce that it would no longer air Kimmel’s late-night show on its 23 ABC affiliates across the country.

    There was no immediate comment from Kimmel, whose contract is up in May 2026.

    In his monologue on Tuesday, Kimmel said that “we hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

    Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr appeared on a podcast Wednesday, where he suggested that local affiliates should pull Kimmel from the air.

    Later in the day, Carr posted on X, saying, “I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing. Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values. I hope that other broadcasters follow Nexstar’s lead.”

    Trump celebrated ABC’s move on the social media site Truth Social, writing: “Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.”

    He also targeted two other late-night hosts, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, and said they should be canceled too, calling them “two total losers.” In July, after CBS canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” Trump wrote on his social media platform: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!” Like Colbert, Kimmel has been consistently been critical of Trump and many of his policies.

    Kimmel’s show pulled as audience waited for taping

    An audience was lined up outside the theater where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tapes when they were told Wednesday’s show was canceled.

    “We were just about to walk in — interestingly enough, they waited to pull the plug on this right as the studio audience was about to walk in,” Tommy Williams, a would-be audience member from Jacksonville, Florida, told The Associated Press outside the theater. “They didn’t tell us what had happened. They just said that the show was canceled.”

    Williams said he was worried someone had been injured — until he saw that ABC had announced nearly at the same time online that the preemption was indefinite. Williams hadn’t been aware of Kimmel’s comments on Kirk, but sought them out after the announcement.

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  • Watch Jimmy Kimmel’s Comments About Charlie Kirk That Got His ABC Show Yanked

    After Jimmy Kimmel‘s monologue on Monday prompted remarks from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr today, Nexstar said that it will pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel Live! from its ABC stations “for the foreseeable future” following his remarks about the suspect in Charlie Kirk’s assassination. ABC quickly followed suit.

    “Jimmy Kimmel Live! will be preempted indefinitely,” an ABC spokesperson told Deadline today.

    The monologue in question mocked Donald Trump over POTUS’ take on the NFL and TikTok, before Kimmel offered his blunt assessment of the aftermath of Kirk’s death: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” the host said.

    Watch it here, with the Charlie Kirk section and Kimmel on “four year-old” Trump’s reaction starting at the 2:00 minute point:

    On Tuesday, authorities charged Tyler Robinson, 22, in Kirk’s killing, along with a series of other charges. Utah County Attorney Jeffrey Gray said that Robinson’s mother said her son “had become more political and had started to lean more to the left, becoming more pro-gay and trans rights oriented.” Gray said that when Robinson’s father asked his son why he did it, Robinson “explained that there was too much evil, and the guy, referring to Charlie Kirk, spreads too much hate.”

    RELATED: Celebrities Who Support Donald Trump

    Tomt

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