As Jimmy Kimmel made his highly anticipated return on Tuesday, September 23, celebrities including Ben Stiller are voicing their support for the late-night host.
Stiller praised Kimmel’s emotional monologue, where the host addressed the brief suspension of his show for the first time on air.
“What a brilliant monologue from Jimmy Kimmel,” Stiller posted to X.
CNN’s Don Lemon also weighed in, saying Kimmel struck the perfect tone in his return. “It was fantastic. I think he was right on, he hit the right tone, and that’s a pro. A real professional,” Lemon said in a video shared on Instagram. “All those people who were cheering for him to be fired or suspended, shame on you.”
Lemon shared a clip from Kimmel’s monologue in which the host joked that the controversy might prompt President Donald Trump to release the Epstein files, captioned “RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES!”
On Jimmy Kimmel Live’s first Instagram post since the hiatus—featuring Kimmel standing in front of an “On Air” sign—the host received praise from numerous celebrities, including Walton Goggins, Melanie Griffith, and Jamie Foxx.
“Go get ‘em Jimmy… You Redwood you,” Goggins wrote.
Stephen Colbert, whose CBS show The Late Show With Stephen Colbert was canceled shortly after he criticized Paramount’s $16 million settlement with Trump, welcomed Kimmel back.
“Welcome back, brother,” Colbert commented from the official Late Show account.
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett also offered support, writing in the comments: “We love you!”
The outpouring of encouragement came after nearly a week of uncertainty surrounding the future of Jimmy Kimmel Live! On Sept. 17, ABC announced an indefinite hiatus for the show following Kimmel’s comments about the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk. The decision came shortly after FCC Chair Brendan Carr threatened action against the network over its criticism of Trump.
ABC later reversed its decision, stating that some of Kimmel’s remarks were “ill-timed, and thus insensitive.”
“Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country,” the network said. “It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive.”
In his return monologue, Kimmel did not apologize for his previous comments but spoke emotionally about the shooting and the controversy that followed.
“I posted a message on Instagram the day he was killed, sending love to his family and asking for compassion, and I meant it and I still do,” Kimmel said. “Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make.”
President Trump, however, expressed disapproval of Kimmel’s return on Truth Social, suggesting he might “test ABC” over the show’s comeback.
“I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back,” Trump wrote on Tuesday, Sept. 23. “The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his ‘talent’ was never there.”
Although Jimmy Kimmel Live! returned to ABC on Tuesday night, it did not air on affiliate stations owned by Nexstar and Sinclair.
