Jimmy Kimmel set to return to air after ABC suspension for Charlie Kirk comments

Jimmy Kimmel will return to TV almost a week after ABC pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live because of comments he made about the death of Charlie Kirk.

“Last Wednesday, we decided to suspend production on the show to avoid making a tense situation worse during an emotional moment for the country,” ABC’s parent company, the Walt Disney Company, said in a statement Monday.

The company added, “We believed some of the comments were poorly timed and came across as insensitive. After thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, we agreed the show will return on Tuesday.”

ABC had announced last week that the show was going off the air “indefinitely” after Kimmel commented on Kirk’s alleged killer: “We had 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.”

The suspension came after Nexstar Media Group, which owns many local TV stations, released a statement objecting to Kimmel’s remarks and said its ABC affiliates would stop airing Jimmy Kimmel Live. (Nexstar recently announced a $6.2 billion deal to buy another station owner, Tegna, a move that still needs government approval.)

Just hours before ABC’s decision, FCC chair Brendan Carr, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, had also pushed for Kimmel’s removal during an interview with The Benny Show. Carr said, “Disney needs to see some change here, but the individual licensed stations that are taking their content, it’s time for them to step up and say this garbage … isn’t something that serves the needs of our local communities.”

Kimmel’s suspension quickly drew backlash from fellow late-night hosts and entertainers. Conan O’Brien said the decision “should disturb everyone on the Right, Left, and Center,” while Bill Maher criticized ABC for pulling the show without explanation.

Some celebrities even announced they were canceling their Disney+ subscriptions in protest.

More than 400 actors, musicians, writers, comedians, and directors signed a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union condemning the suspension. The letter called ABC’s move a “dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation” and accused the company of trying to silence artists and journalists.

The signers included Jamie Lee Curtis, Florence Pugh, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Pedro Pascal, Meryl Streep, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, T.R. Knight, Olivia Rodrigo, Tony Gilroy, Diego Luna, Kathryn Hahn, Mark Ruffalo, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

At the same time, some conservative figures — including Megyn Kelly and President Trump — praised the suspension. President Trump claimed Kimmel has “ZERO talent, and worse ratings” than Stephen Colbert.

While late-night ratings overall have fallen in recent years, Kimmel currently leads the 18–49 age group, according to LateNighter. He averages 220,000 viewers in that key demographic, ahead of Colbert (219,000) and Jimmy Fallon (157,000).

So far, Kimmel has not made any public statements about his suspension or his return.