Jimmy Kimmel Live! is back!
The late-night show aired for the first time since Sept. 16 after it was pulled indefinitely by ABC on Sept. 17 following controversial comments Jimmy Kimmel made about slain political influencer Charlie Kirk.
In his opening monologue, Kimmel addressed the firestorm for the first time, stating, “I do want to make something clear, because it’s important to me as a human, and that is, you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man. I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.”
“I posted a message on Instagram the day he was killed sending love to his family and asking for a compassion, and I meant it. I still do,” he continued while getting choked up. “Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make, but I understand that to some that felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both.”
Kimmel thanked everyone who reached out to him during the suspension, particularly his fellow late night hosts Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, David Letterman, and Jay Leno, among others both in the U.S. and across the world.
He also advocated for the right to free speech, pulling up clips of President Donald Trump and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr previously defending the First Amendment right despite publicly criticizing the comedian.
“Should the government be allowed to regulate which podcasts the cell phone companies and WiFi providers are allowed to let you download to make sure they serve the public interest? You think that sounds crazy?” he said. “Ten years ago, this sounded crazy.”
Last week, Carr called Kimmel’s comments “some of the sickest conduct possible.” Later in the show, Kimmel put on a skit featuring Robert DeNiro as a dramatized version of the FCC Chairman.
Kimmel ended the monologue by highlighting Kirk’s widow Erika Kirk — who publicly forgave her husband’s killer during his public memorial service on Sunday, Sept. 20 — as an example for his viewers to follow.
“If you believe in the teachings of Jesus as I do, there it was,” he said. “A selfless act of grace, forgiveness from a grieving widow. That touched me deeply. And if there’s anything we should take from this tragedy to carry forward, I hope it can be that, not this.”
Kimmel’s monologue was met with a standing ovation and wild cheers from the crowd.
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For his first show back, Kimmel welcomed guests Glen Powell and Sarah McLachlan.
Disney announced the show’s return on Monday, Sept. 22 after their executives came to an agreement with Kimmel on when the show would come back and what he would say upon its return.
“Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country. It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive,” a statement shared by a Disney representative read. “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.”
Kimmel shared his perspective of the conversations during his monologue, stating, “I shared my point of view, they shared theirs. We talked it through. And at the end, even though they didn’t have to, they really didn’t have to, this is a giant company, we have short attention spans and I am a tiny part of the Disney corporation, they welcomed me back on the air. And I thank them for that, because I know that unfortunately and I think unjustly, this puts them at risk.”
At one point during the monologue, Kimmel joked that Disney asked him to read a statement. He then pulled out a piece of paper and read instructions on how to reactivate a Disney+ subscription as the audience laughed.
RELATED: ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ Will Not Return to ABC Affiliate That Demanded Apology to Charlie Kirk’s Family
Though Disney brought the show back to air, their two largest affiliate groups — Nexstar and Sinclair Broadcasting Group — did not show Tuesday night’s episode, instead replacing it with news programming. It is unclear if and when they will return Jimmy Kimmel Live! to air.
Kimmel’s full monologue can be viewed here.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Sep 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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