The boycott is over and Jimmy Kimmel Live! is back.
The late-night show returns “this evening” to ABC affiliates owned by Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting — the companies announced Friday.
Nexstar and Sinclair are the two biggest local TV station owners in the country.
But after banning their stations from airing the show, the media giants backtracked on Friday, Sept. 26, admitting viewers were revolting and advertisers were not happy.
“Sinclair today announced that it will end its preemption of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the show will return, this evening, on Sinclair’s ABC affiliates,” the company said in its announcement. “Over the last week, we have received thoughtful feedback from viewers, advertisers, and community leaders representing a wide range of perspectives.”
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The press release also mentioned an incident last week, when a gunman fired shots into an ABC station in California, the day after a pro-Kimmel protest.
“We have also witnessed troubling acts of violence, including the despicable incident of a shooting at an ABC affiliate station in Sacramento. These events underscore why responsible broadcasting matters and why respectful dialogue between differing voices remains so important,” Sinclair said.
The company noted that it “proposed measures to strengthen accountability,” but ABC and Disney had not yet responded.
A short time after the announcement, Nexstar followed by saying it’s also bringing the show back tonight.
“We have had discussions with executives at The Walt Disney Company and appreciate their constructive approach to addressing our concerns. As a local broadcaster, Nexstar remains committed to protecting the First Amendment while producing and airing local and national news that is fact-based and unbiased and, above all, broadcasting content that is in the best interest of the communities we serve,” Nexstar said in a statement.
The two announcements came after ABC and parent company Disney lifted a brief suspension of the late-night show amid controversy, and it returned to the air on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
Host Jimmy Kimmel and his staff were abruptly sidelined on Sept. 17, for comments the comedian made on-air about the death of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk.
The Turning Point USA co-founder was fatally shot on Sept. 10, at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
Five days later, Kimmel discussed Kirk’s killing in his monologue, mentioned the 22-year-old suspect, and joked about President Donald Trump’s reaction to his friend’s death.
“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 on his Sept. 15 episode.
The video then showed Trump answering a question from reporters about how he was “holding up” after his friend’s death.
“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… and it’s gonna be a beauty,” Trump said, quickly changing the subject.
Kimmel quipped in response, “He’s at the fourth stage of grief — construction.”
Trump was furious. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr suggested the government might take action, and threatened the license of any ABC affiliate that continued to air the program.
Sinclair’s right-leaning management and Nexstar — which has a $6.2 billion merger awaiting approval by the Trump-controlled FCC — quickly announced their stations would not air the show.
Protests erupted around the country over Kimmel’s suspension by ABC. Local residents flooded TV stations with complaints, Democratic members of Congress called for investigations, and critics demanded the FCC’s Carr be fired.
Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner chimed in too, and blasted the company’s currently leadership for bowing to pressure.
After ABC relented and said the show would return, Nexstar and Sinclair doubled down and refused to bring it back.
Some published reports Friday said the station groups relented after Disney allegedly threatened to block their ABC affiliates from airing NFL games.
Kimmel made an emotional return on Sept. 23. While he did not apologize for his earlier comments, he said he did have regrets.
“It was never my intention to make light of a murder of a young man,” he said through tears. “But I understand that to some it felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both. And for those who think I did point a finger, I get why you’re upset, if the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I would have felt the same way.”
Urban Hollywood 411 was outside his studio in Hollywood, and spoke to audience members after the taping.
“Jimmy’s monologue was very emotional, heartfelt, and it was nice to hear him speak again,” said longtime fan Malynda Hale said. “It was a big celebration of him, honestly.”
But a man who was walking down the street sided with Kimmel’s critics. The man declined to give his name, but told us Kimmel’s comments were “not funny.”
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