Will Jimmy Kimmel go back on the air? Sinclair's demands set up a standoff Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY September 18, 2025 at 9:27 PM 185 Following the abrupt suspension of latenight comic Jimmy Kimmel, whose show was suspended indefinitely over comments he made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing, one...
- - Will Jimmy Kimmel go back on the air? Sinclair's demands set up a standoff
Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY September 18, 2025 at 9:27 PM
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Following the abrupt suspension of late-night comic Jimmy Kimmel, whose show was suspended indefinitely over comments he made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing, one question looms large: Will his show ever return?
The answer is complicated.
During a Sept. 17 monologue, Kimmel implied that Kirk's killer, who has now been identified as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was a member of the MAGA coalition and prompted swift backlash.
"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.
In the immediate aftermath, the head of the Federal Communications Commission issued a threat to Disney, the parent company of ABC.
Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/UwJHRqO class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
">Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
" src=https://ift.tt/UwJHRqO class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/z3CFcly class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
">Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
" src=https://ift.tt/z3CFcly class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/WlGhx6i class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
" src=https://ift.tt/WlGhx6i class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/d43muls class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
">Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
" src=https://ift.tt/d43muls class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/MSQydbz class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
" src=https://ift.tt/MSQydbz class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/PpdMas8 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
" src=https://ift.tt/PpdMas8 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/6NPTBfo class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
" src=https://ift.tt/6NPTBfo class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/snjwBED class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
">Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/snjwBED class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/124d7i5 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
">Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
" src=https://ift.tt/124d7i5 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/yKBCbn8 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
" src=https://ift.tt/yKBCbn8 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/BLMQtvx class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
">Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/BLMQtvx class=caas-img>President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/AJKzVkE class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
">President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/AJKzVkE class=caas-img>Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/BSVHpis class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
">Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
" src=https://ift.tt/BSVHpis class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/YmX8pOt class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
" src=https://ift.tt/YmX8pOt class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/tcozQJH class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
" src=https://ift.tt/tcozQJH class=caas-img>
Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/rRls4Xt class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
">Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
" src=https://ift.tt/rRls4Xt class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/oUDbMYQ class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
">Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
" src=https://ift.tt/oUDbMYQ class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/SCNJfH0 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
">Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
" src=https://ift.tt/SCNJfH0 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/wVi8Cf2 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
">Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
" src=https://ift.tt/wVi8Cf2 class=caas-img>
Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/YSX6zw4 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
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1 / 23ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career
Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
"This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Brendan Carr, the chairman of the FCC, said during a YouTube episode of commentator Benny Johnson's show on Sept. 17.
"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, you know, garbage to the extent that that's what comes down the pipe in the future isn't something that we think serves the needs of our local communities," he continued. "There's calls for Kimmel to be fire. I think you could certainly see a path forward for suspension over this."
Candles are placed next to a picture of Charlie Kirk during a Sept. 11 vigil under the line "In Memory of Charlie Kirk, for freedom, patriotism and justice" in front of the United States Embassy in Berlin, Germany.
Following Carr's comments, Nexstar Media Group Inc. said it would stop airing the show on its 32 ABC affiliates. Shortly after Nexstar announced its decision, ABC, which holds FCC-approved licenses for the local broadcast affiliates it owns, also stated that Kimmel would be pulled from the air.
The Sinclair Broadcast Group, which also owns a basket of ABC affiliates, announced plans to replace Kimmel's timeslot with a remembrance special honoring Kirk on Friday, Sept. 19.
As of Thursday, Sept. 18, it was not clear how ironclad the "indefinitely" in ABC's statement announcing Kimmel's cancellation was. A staple in late-night programming, the show serves as a one-stop shop for daily comedy monologues and celebrity interviews, particularly for stars promoting shows on ABC and its parent company Disney. Over time, the hole left by Kimmel's absence in the daily line-up will certainly be felt by cable viewers.
While neither Nexstar nor ABC offered the public a clear set of guidelines for how they would proceed, Sinclair did leave the door ajar, saying in a statement: "We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr's remarks today and this incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks."
It clarified that Sinclair stations will not air "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" until "we are confident that appropriate steps have been taken to uphold the standards expected of a national broadcast platform." The company also called for Kimmel to issue a direct apology to Kirk's family and to make a personal donation both to the family and Kirk's organization, Turning Point USA.
Protests outside "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" after show suspension.
Whether Kimmel will bend to such a request remains to be seen. His contempt for President Trump, who applauded ABC's decision, is well documented, and the show's fiery political takes could face an uncertain future with a could-be cancellation hovering never far in the background.
Deadline reported that Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Dana Walden called the comedian directly to tell him the news, and that Disney CEO Bob Iger was involved in the decision; the outlet also cited sources saying that Kimmel was unwilling to apologize for his on-air comments.
For now, the stand-off remains.
Contributing: Anthony Robledo
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Jimmy Kimmel return to air? Industry enter uncharted territory
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