Jimmy Kimmel is reportedly “absolutely f–king livid” after ABC suspended his late-night talk show in the wake of furious MAGA backlash to comments he made about Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
Sources told the Daily Mail the 57-year-old comedian erupted in anger after Disney-owned ABC, under pressure from affiliates and political figures, announced Wednesday that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be “pre-empted indefinitely.” Nexstar Media Group, a major broadcaster for ABC affiliates, confirmed it would not air Kimmel’s program “for the foreseeable future,” citing his remarks as “offensive and insensitive at a critical time.”
Kimmel, who has hosted the show since 2004, allegedly views the decision as a breaking point. “Jimmy is pissed over the decision to suspend him and the show and he isn’t going to take this lightly,” one producer said. Another insider added: “I’ve never seen Kimmel this angry.”
The controversy stems from Kimmel’s Monday night monologue, where he skewered Trump allies for weaponizing Kirk’s death. “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said.
While the segment did not explicitly label Kirk’s accused killer, Tyler Robinson, as MAGA, critics accused Kimmel of pushing a partisan narrative. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr warned ABC could face license scrutiny, describing the comments as evidence the network had “failed the public interest test.”
The suspension ignited a firestorm, with President Donald Trump personally celebrating the news from London, where he was on a state visit. “Great News for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert. That leaves Jimmy [Fallon] and Seth [Meyers], two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Do it NBC!!!”
The move makes Kimmel the second late-night star to face political exile after Trump’s rise. CBS announced earlier this summer that Stephen Colbert’s Late Show would end in 2026, a decision the president also hailed as a personal victory.
Kimmel reportedly had no plans to apologize for his remarks and was preparing to address the controversy on-air before the plug was pulled. “This is clearly the government overreaching,” one source close to the host told Rolling Stone. “There’s no such thing as free speech in America if the government can lean on companies to stop any content they don’t like.”
The outrage has also accelerated talks between Kimmel and Colbert, with speculation that the pair could collaborate in some form to mount a joint resistance against what they view as political censorship. “This has lit an extreme fire under Jimmy’s ass to continue to tell it like it is and be real to himself,” a source told Daily Mail.
Meanwhile, FCC Chairman Carr told Sean Hannity that Kimmel’s ouster was “an important turning point.” He blasted late-night hosts as “court clerics enforcing a very narrow ideology,” and praised Nexstar and Sinclair for refusing to air Kimmel’s program. “I can’t imagine another time when we’ve had local broadcasters tell Disney that your content no longer meets the needs and the values of our community,” Carr said.
The fallout has left Hollywood stunned. Kimmel’s show, a staple since 2004, has long been a platform for political humor and celebrity interviews. Now, its indefinite suspension signals a chilling new reality: late-night comedy has become the latest battleground in Trump’s escalating war on dissent.
For Kimmel, the fight appears far from over. As one producer put it: “Jimmy isn’t just angry — he’s ready to go to war.”
