ABC has indefinitely suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show starting Wednesday, following remarks he made about Charlie Kirk’s death. The comments prompted a coalition of ABC-affiliated stations to pull the show from their lineups and drew stern warnings from a top federal regulator.
The seasoned late-night host made a series of pointed comments on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Monday and Tuesday, addressing the fallout from last week’s assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, including his claim that "many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk."
ABC, which has aired Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show since 2003, acted swiftly after Nexstar Communications Group announced it would pull the program starting Wednesday. "Kimmel’s comments about Kirk’s death are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse," said Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division. Nexstar oversees 23 ABC-affiliated stations.
Kimmel has yet to comment; his contract with ABC runs through May 2026. The network’s statement offered no explanation for the preemption of his show.
President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to applaud ABC’s decision, writing, "Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done."
Earlier, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr condemned Kimmel’s remarks as "truly sick," asserting that the agency has a strong case to hold Kimmel, ABC, and parent company Walt Disney Co. accountable for spreading misinformation. Carr claimed the host appeared to deliberately mislead the public into believing that Kirk’s assassin was a right-wing Trump supporter.
In his Monday night monologue, Kimmel implied that Tyler Robinson, the alleged killer of Charlie Kirk, may have been a pro-Trump Republican. “The MAGA Gang (is) 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,” Kimmel said. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
“This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney,” Carr said on the Benny Johnson podcast. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to take action on Kimmel or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
Authorities report that the 22-year-old, raised in a conservative household in southern Utah, had embraced what they describe as "leftist ideology." His parents told investigators that over the past year he had shifted politically to the left and become pro-LGBTQ rights. Records show his voter status is inactive, meaning he did not participate in two consecutive general elections. He reportedly told his transgender partner that he targeted Kirk because he had "enough of his hatred."
People walk by the Jimmy Kimmel Live studio on Hollywood Blvd., Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
The business landscape around late-night television
Both Disney and Nexstar have significant FCC matters on the horizon. Disney is seeking regulatory approval for ESPN’s acquisition of the NFL Network, while Nexstar awaits the Trump administration’s clearance to finalize its $6.2 billion purchase of broadcast rival Tegna.
For both companies, bringing Kimmel back after a suspension could provoke the ire of Trump, who has already asserted that the show has been canceled.
While CBS announced last summer that it would cancel Colbert’s show next May for financial reasons, some critics have questioned whether his outspoken stance on Trump played a part. Both Colbert and Kimmel have frequently targeted the president in their monologues. Shortly after the Colbert cancellation, the FCC approved CBS parent company Paramount’s long-pending deal with Skydance.
Trump similarly welcomed Colbert’s impending departure, stating at the time, 'I absolutely love that Colbert got fired.' “His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next.”
Over the past year, both Disney and CBS parent company Paramount opted to settle lawsuits filed by Trump against their news divisions, choosing resolution over prolonged court battles.
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez criticized the administration on X, accusing it of "using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression."
“Another media outlet withered under government pressure, ensuring that the administration will continue to extort and exact retribution on broadcasters and publishers who criticize it,” said Ari Cohn, lead counsel for tech policy at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. “We cannot be a country where late-night talk show hosts serve at the pleasure of the president.”
The scene outside Kimmel’s studio after show was suspended
About three hours after ABC’s decision, Kimmel left the Hollywood theater where his show is taped. Wearing a black hat, backpack, and plaid shirt, he kept his head down as he entered a waiting vehicle.
A crowd had gathered outside the theater where "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" is taped when they were informed that Wednesday’s show had been 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.”
More of what Kimmel said on his show
Kimmel said that Trump’s response to Kirk’s death “is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish, OK?” He also said that FBI chief Kash Patel has handled the investigation into the killing “like a kid who didn’t read the book, BSing his way through an oral report.”
He revisited the topic on Tuesday night, ridiculing Vice President JD Vance’s stint as guest host on Kirk’s podcast.
He said Trump was “fanning the flames” by attacking people on the left. “Which is it, are they a bunch of sissy pickleball players because they’re too scared to be hit by tennis balls, or a well-organized deadly team of commandos, because they can’t be both of those things.”
The move comes as the president, his administration, and his political party have intensified efforts to monitor and police speech surrounding Kirk’s death. Earlier this week, Vice President JD Vance called on Americans to report fellow citizens who mocked the assassination. The development also marks the latest attempt by the administration to leverage its power over the media. FCC Chairman Carr has opened investigations into outlets that have drawn Trump’s ire, and the president has filed numerous lawsuits against media organizations over critical coverage.
