Jimmy Kimmel Champions Free Speech and Calls Out Trump in Late-Night Comeback

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The Brief September 24, 2025

Jimmy Kimmel calls out Trump in late-night comeback, Trump designates ‘Antifa’ a terror organization, and more

Podcast ID – Short Length: 99cfa38b-3e2c-4712-a68b-e169ca80f23b

Podcast ID – Long Length: 99cfa38b-3e2c-4712-a68b-e169ca80f23b

Jimmy Kimmel was back on late-night television Tuesday after a six-day break, delivering a powerful, almost 18-minute opening monologue that directly addressed his time off air.

You know, being on *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* tonight is just… incredible. Honestly, the last six days have been a whirlwind. I’ve been getting messages from so many people – it feels like *everyone* has reached out, which is pretty amazing.

It was really emotional listening to Jimmy Kimmel last night. He got choked up a few times while thanking other late-night hosts – Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Jimmy Fallon, and Seth Meyers – for being there for him. It meant a lot to see them all support him like that.

Jimmy Kimmel expressed gratitude to his fans and also acknowledged those who disagree with him and his show. He specifically praised their support of his right to express his views, even if they don’t share them. He called out several prominent Republicans – Senators Mitch McConnell, Rand Paul, and Ted Cruz – along with conservative commentator Ben Shapiro – by name as examples.

Kimmel pointed out that the show itself isn’t the most crucial thing. What truly matters, he said, is living in a country where a show like theirs can even exist.

As a huge late-night fan, I was pretty shocked to hear about the trouble Jimmy Kimmel got into last week. Apparently, some comments he made on his September 15th show about Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist who recently passed away, caused a real stir. It got to the point where the head of the FCC threatened to take action against ABC, and even some of ABC’s parent companies – Nexstar and Sinclair – actually stopped airing the show. It’s an indefinite suspension right now, which is definitely concerning!

The unexpected pause of the late-night show sparked worries about free speech, uniting Democrats and some Republicans. Many people who subscribe to Disney+, the parent company of ABC, were upset by the decision, with some cancelling their subscriptions and hundreds demonstrating at Disney’s headquarters last week.

Kimmel said the reasons his show was taken off the air were unlawful and went against American principles, calling them a serious threat.

According to Deadline, the future of the show depended on a deal finalized Monday between Disney and Jimmy Kimmel’s team. A source revealed that Kimmel will have full creative freedom upon his return, stating, “Jimmy will say what Jimmy wants to say.” TIME has contacted Disney for a statement.

During his opening remarks, Kimmel discussed his recent conversations with Disney. He explained that despite being a small part of a very large company, Disney graciously allowed him to address the situation on air, and he appreciated that. He also noted he understood this decision might unfortunately subject Disney to criticism, which he felt was unfair.

Many ABC stations will continue to skip airing Jimmy Kimmel Live!, as Nexstar and Sinclair have decided not to broadcast it. Nexstar explained they’ll air local news and other programming instead until everyone agrees to a positive and productive discussion. Sinclair stated they’re also replacing Kimmel’s show with news, but they are still talking with ABC about potentially bringing it back in the future.

I was really glad to hear Jimmy Kimmel address the comments he made about Kirk and the shooter on his show. He explained that he never meant to downplay the tragedy of losing a young life, and definitely didn’t want to blame anyone for the actions of someone clearly struggling with serious issues. He understood that some people felt his timing was off or that his words weren’t as clear as they should have been, and he wanted to make that clear.

I love and stay connected with many family and friends, even though we have very different political views. The person who shot Charlie Kirk doesn’t represent anyone, and was clearly deeply disturbed. Violence is never the answer to anything.”

Trump condemns Kimmel’s late-night return

Not everyone was happy about Kimmel’s late-night return—particularly President Donald Trump. 

The President expressed disbelief on his social media platform just before Jimmy Kimmel’s show returned, criticizing ABC for rehiring him. He claimed ABC had previously informed the White House the show was cancelled and suggested Kimmel’s ratings have plummeted and he lacks talent. The President questioned why the network would reinstate someone he considers unfunny, damaging to the network, and overly biased towards the Democratic party, alleging this could be an illegal campaign contribution.

Following the suspension of a late-night show, Trump expressed his approval and hinted at wanting to cancel other similar programs that often criticized him. Trump has been a frequent target of jokes and criticism on late-night TV, like many public figures. He’s previously claimed negative news coverage is unfair and even illegal, and suggested that TV networks could lose their broadcasting licenses if they continue to criticize him.

Okay, so the President is still really upset with ABC News. He’s bringing up that they paid him a million dollars last December because of a lawsuit he filed against George Stephanopoulos and the network. It all started when Stephanopoulos said something on air that implied Trump had been found liable for raping E. Jean Carroll. Now, a jury *did* find Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming Carroll in 2023, but they specifically said she hadn’t proven he actually raped her. It’s a complicated situation, but he’s definitely still focused on what happened with ABC.

Trump stated he plans to challenge Jimmy Kimmel, anticipating a financial gain similar to the $16 million he received after previously criticizing Kimmel. He dismissed Kimmel as a ‘loser’ and expressed hope for Kimmel’s show to perform poorly in ratings.

It’s not clear what former President Trump meant when he said he was “testing” ABC. The White House hasn’t yet responded to a request for clarification from TIME magazine.

Kimmel responded to Trump’s efforts to cancel his show, saying Trump seems happy when people lose their jobs simply because they made fun of him.

Kimmel also lambasted Carr for his threats. 

Jimmy Kimmel pointed out that threatening companies with FCC action – saying they can comply with his wishes or face consequences – is both a violation of free speech rights and a poor strategy to use publicly.

Following threats from Donald Trump to try and get late-night talk show hosts canceled, the host urged both his studio and television audiences to become even more vocal. He said he hoped they would be ten times louder if Trump attempted to take similar action, emphasizing the importance of speaking up.

Jimmy Kimmel, whose current contract for his late-night show is said to end in May, also joked about Donald Trump’s attempts to criticize him.

Kimmel said it’s almost hard to feel anything but pity for the person who tried to sabotage his show. That attempt actually ended up drawing a massive audience, completely backfiring on them. Kimmel joked that their next move might be releasing the Epstein files as a way to change the subject.

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2025-09-24 16:07