The late-night talk show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, is making its return. After a brief halt, ABC has confirmed the program will be back on air.
The Walt Disney Company, parent of ABC, shared their decision on Monday, September 22. They explained why production stopped last Wednesday. "We chose to pause the show to avoid making a tense situation even worse," the company stated. "Our country was going through an emotional time. We felt some comments were poorly timed and insensitive. We’ve talked with Jimmy for the past few days. After these talks, we decided the show would air again on Tuesday."
News broke on September 17 that ABC had pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live! from its schedule. This came after host Jimmy Kimmel faced criticism for remarks about Charlie Kirk and then-President Donald Trump. At the time, an ABC spokesperson told Us Weekly that the show was "suspended indefinitely."
Reports from Variety suggest that the decision to pull the show came after Nexstar Media reportedly threatened to remove Jimmy Kimmel Live! from its own programming. Nexstar informed Variety that their ABC-affiliated stations would stop airing the show "in the near future." This action was set to begin with the September 17 episode. The media company added that it "strongly objects to Mr. Kimmel’s recent comments regarding the murder of Charlie Kirk." Nexstar planned to replace the show with other programming in its ABC-affiliated markets.
Two days before the show was pulled, Kimmel, 57, discussed Kirk’s death during his monologue on September 15. Kirk, a conservative commentator, died from a gunshot on September 10. Kimmel also spoke about the alleged killer, Tyler Robinson. Kimmel accused conservatives of trying to connect Robinson to the far left, calling it "new lows."
"The MAGA group is desperately trying to paint this guy who killed Charlie Kirk as anything but one of their own," Kimmel said on September 15. "They are going out of their way to gain politically from it. There was also grieving among the finger-pointing."
Following the show’s temporary cancellation, Us Weekly reported that the staff of Jimmy Kimmel Live! felt unsure about their jobs. A source close to the show mentioned that employees were "initially told the suspension would only be for the rest of that week." However, confusing messages left "nobody really knowing what was happening."
Before this whole situation, Kimmel had reacted to Kirk’s death on Instagram. He condemned gun violence and sent his well wishes to Kirk’s family. "Instead of pointing fingers, could we just agree for one day that shooting another human being is awful and monstrous?" he wrote on September 10. "On behalf of my family, we send our love to the Kirks. We also send it to all children, parents, and innocent people who suffer from senseless gun violence."
Jimmy Kimmel Live! first aired on ABC in January 2003. The show was in its 23rd season when it was taken off the air.