ABC will put Jimmy Kimmel Live! back on the air Tuesday, less than a week after the network suspended the late-night host for remarks about the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
The Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC, said the pause was meant to “avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country.” The company said Monday that after “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy,” the show would return.
The controversy began, Sept. 15, when Kimmel used his opening monologue to criticize what he called efforts by Donald Trump supporters to “score political points” by framing Kirk’s alleged killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, as a left-wing radical.
“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 with everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said on his Monday night show.
On Wednesday, Sept. 17, distributor Nexstar announced it would pull the show from its affiliates, prompting Disney to suspend production. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr also threatened to “take action” against the ABC affiliates’ broadcast licenses, saying, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
The suspension drew immediate backlash. More than 400 Hollywood figures, including Tom Hanks, Jennifer Aniston and Meryl Streep, signed an ACLU-organized letter warning that pulling Kimmel off air posed “threats to our freedom of speech.” Protesters gathered outside Disney’s Burbank lot, holding signs in defense of the host. Many people cancelled their Hulu/Disney+ subscriptions, prompting Disney’s stock to drop $4 billion.
Late-night colleagues from Stephen Colbert to Seth Meyers to John Oliver spoke out as well. Meyers called it “a big moment in our democracy,” adding that free speech is enshrined in the First Amendment.
Even some conservatives voiced concerns. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said it was “unbelievably dangerous for government to put itself in the position of saying we’re going to decide what speech we like and what we don’t.” FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez criticized Carr’s threats as inconsistent with the First Amendment and beyond the FCC’s authority.
ABC’s announcement does not guarantee viewers in every market will see Kimmel on Tuesday. Nexstar has not said whether it will reverse its blackout, and Sinclair, the largest owner of ABC affiliates, previously demanded Kimmel apologize directly to Kirk’s family and make a donation to Turning Point USA before restoring the show.
