‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ Set to Return After Fallout From Suspension

Jimmy Kimmel Live! fans can rejoice. The late-night show is set to return Tuesday after it was suspended over comments host Jimmy Kimmel made following the fatal shooting of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.

ABC and parent company Disney made the announcement on Monday afternoon, Sept. 22. While they called Kimmel’s remarks “ill-timed,” executives decided to bring his show back.

“We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday,” the network said in a press release.

ABC took the show off the air on Sept. 17, following complaints from some conservatives about Kimmel’s statements two days earlier.

“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 doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said about the arrest of 22-year-old suspect Tyler Robinson, who was charged with aggravated murder and other counts.

The video cut to reporters asking President Trump how he was “holding up” after losing his friend.

“I think very good, and by the way, you see all the trucks? They just started construction on the new ballroom for the White House,” said Trump, seemingly brushing Kirk’s death aside.

Kimmel reacted by saying, “He’s at the fourth stage of grief — construction.”

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Kimmel and suggested ABC affiliates that continue to air his show could face consequences.

Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting said their local ABC affiliates would no longer run the show. In response, ABC suspended the program “indefinitely.”

Trump ally Carr responded by tweeting, “I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing.”

Nexstar is in the middle of a mega-merger and needs the FCC to approve the deal. While the leaders of Sinclair are known to lean right.

But others have been highly critical of the decision to suspend Kimmel.

Subscribers dumped Disney+ and Hulu, and people vowed to boycott Disneyland and Disney World.

Disney’s stock has lost $4 billion in market value since Kimmel was suspended, Stockhouse.com reported.

Protesters have gathered daily outside his studio in Los Angeles, carrying signs, chanting, and demanding the comedian’s return.

There was a drive-by shooting at the ABC affiliate in Sacramento, California on Friday. Police arrested a 64-year-old suspect hours later. They did not release a motive, but the shooting happened a day after a large protest outside the station in support of Kimmel.

Earlier today, members of California’s U.S. congressional delegation joined Hollywood union members for a protest outside Kimmel’s studio, with dozens of jobs on the line if the show remained off the air.

And more than 400 Hollywood stars signed a letter to the American Civil Liberties Union, saying the Trump administration is trying to silence its critics.

“Last week, Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air after the government threatened a private company with retaliation, marking a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation,” the letter said. “In an attempt to silence its critics, our government has resorted to threatening the livelihoods of journalists, talk show hosts, artists, creatives, and entertainers across the board. This runs counter to the values our nation was built upon, and our Constitution guarantees.”

Those signing the letter included Kerry Washington, Roy Wood Jr., Holly Robinson Peete, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Selena Gomez, Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro, Jane Fonda, Meryl Streep, Maya Rudolph, and Amber Ruffin.

The letter concluded by saying, “We encourage all Americans to join us, along with the ACLU, in the fight to defend and preserve our constitutionally protected rights.”