'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' returns after ABC suspension: Highlights, audience reaction and more

The social media accounts for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" continued posting updates and highlights from tonight's episode on social media after the episode aired on the East Coast.

Among the posts: An image of Kimmel walking down the hallway backstage. "ON AIR" the caption read.

The show will air on the West Coast at 11:35 p.m. PT.

It seemed like an impossible task, but on Tuesday Kimmel delivered a monologue that served his audience and talked straight about his bosses at Disney and ABC while holding the government’s feet to the fire over incursions on free speech.

Here’s how he did it.

• He spoke from his heart and reached out directly to people who may have been hurt by his comments about Charlie Kirk. “It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” Kimmel said, his voice breaking as he spoke about the killing of the conservative commentator. “Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group. For those who think I did point a finger, I get why you’re upset.”
• He balanced his show’s signature humor — first appearing on screen dressed as a bear beside his sidekick Guillermo dressed as a banana— with remarks that addressed the seriousness of the controversy that has engulfed Disney and ABC for the past week. “This show is not important,” he said. “What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.”
• He directly tackled the tensions with his bosses at Disney, admitting that he was "not happy when they pulled me off the air on Wednesday. I did not agree with that decision, and I told them that.” But he also showed that he understands what the company is up against, noting that in welcoming him back. “Unfortunately and I think unjustly, this puts them at risk," he said. He acknowledged that, “We’re suddenly not being broadcast in 20% of the country.”
• He avoided delivering a partisan screed, instead thanking some of the surprising allies who have spoken out against his suspension, including right-wing figures like Ben Shapiro, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and “those in the middle, like Joe Rogan.” “Maybe the silver lining from this is we found one thing we can agree on,” Kimmel said. “Let’s stop letting these politicians tell us what they want and tell them what we want.”
• He made us laugh. At the end of the day, Kimmel’s is a comedy show, and he delivered self-aware satire in a moment of seriousness, playing a clip of Trump mocking his low ratings. “He had no ratings,” Trump said,” in the clip. “I do tonight,” Kimmel responded.

Kimmel joked that sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez called him when the show was pulled and "offered to sell his Labubus."

Rodriguez said the world "needs more people like Jimmy Kimmel."

Guillermo Rodriguez and Jimmy Kimmel hug on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Randy Holmes / Disney

"He's a great man, a great father," he said. "Thank you, Jimmy. I love you, and I stand with you all the way."

The two then hugged.

In Los Angeles, a group of top comedians will gather for a big party at Laugh Factory Hollywood tonight at 11 to salute Kimmel.

The Stonewall Inn in New York posted on Threads that it was holding a viewing party tonight, as well.

Tonight's episode of the ABC late night show currently appears to be on YouTube, at least partially.

The show's monologue was made available online, in addition to Robert De Niro's appearance. By 10 p.m. PT, the clip on the show's official YouTube page was inching toward 1 million views.

Kimmel referred to the fact that not everyone will be able to watch him tonight. He did not mention Nexstar and Sinclair, two major local TV operators, by name. But the two companies have said they will continue to not air his show.

"We are still on the air in most of the country," he said, "except ironically for Washington, D.C., where we have been pre-empted. We are off the air in Nashville, New Orleans, Portland, Oregon, Salt Lake City and St. Louis, where none of my wife's family is able to watch the show tonight. So sorry, Aunt Sharon, sorry, Aunt Marie, you'll have to go to YouTube."

You heard it from Robert De Niro first: "Speech ... it ain't free no more."

The Oscar-winning actor joined Kimmel in a video call tonight, during which he pretended he was the "new FCC chairman."

“Pardon me for saying, and maybe you’re the wrong guy to talk to, but it seems like the FCC is using mob tactics to suppress free speech,” Kimmel told De Niro.

De Niro responded with a profanity-laced rant. Regarding free speech, he told Kimmel: "Depends on what you want to say. Like if you want to say something nice about the president’s beautiful, thick, yellow hair or how he can do his makeup better than any broad, that’s free. But if you want to do a joke like he’s so fat he needs two seats on the Epstein jet, that’s gonna cost you.”

Kimmel spent some of his monologue thanking his colleagues and friends in the comedy world for their support, including the late-night hosts who share the airwaves with him.

He specifically called out Stephen Colbert (who Kimmel said also "found himself in this predicament" at CBS), Jon Stewart, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon, John Oliver, James Corden and others.

"I heard from late-night hosts in other countries, from Ireland and from Germany," Kimmel said. "The guy in Germany offered me a job. Can you imagine this country has become so authoritarian, the Germans are like, come here?"

A grateful Kimmel said that for 23 years, ABC (and later also Disney, its parent company) have allowed him to "evolve and to stretch the boundaries of what was once traditional for a late-night talk show, even when it made them uncomfortable."

In the past, he said, the network has "defended" his "right to poke fun at our leaders and to advocate for subjects that I think are important by allowing me to use their platform, and I am very grateful for that."

However, he said, he was not pleased when he was pulled off the air last week.

"I did not agree with that decision, and I told them that, and we had many conversations. I shared my point of view; they shared theirs," he said. "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."

He also thanked his supporters, as well as those who aren't his fans but supported him anyway. “Most of all, I want to thank the people who don’t support my show and what I believe, but support my right to share those beliefs anyway," he said.

Kimmel praised Charlie Kirk's widow Erika Kirk for forgiving her late husband's alleged shooter, calling it an an act of grace that others could learn from.

“She forgave him," Kimmel said, emotion in his voice. "That is an example we should follow."

“If you believe in the teachings of Jesus, as I do, there it was. That, that’s it,” he added. “A selfless act of grace. Forgiveness from a grieving widow. It touched me deeply, and I hope it touches many. And if there’s anything we should take from this tragedy to carry forward, I hope it can be that.”

Kimmel thanked Disney for welcoming him back on the air and said the decision “unjustly puts them at risk.”

“The president of the United States made it very clear he wants to see me and the hundreds of people who work here fired from our jobs. Our leader celebrates Americans losing their livelihoods because he can’t take a joke,” Kimmel said.

“He was able to squeeze Colbert out of CBS, then he turned his sights on me, and now he’s openly rooting for NBC to fire Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers and the hundreds of Americans who work for their shows who don’t make millions of dollars," he added. "And I hope that if that happens, or if there’s even any hint of that happening, you will be 10 times as loud as you were this week.”

Kimmel also emphasized the importance of a “free press,” saying it’s “nuts that we aren’t paying attention” to how the administration is also attempting to control what news is reported.

Kimmel said that he asked for compassion for Kirk’s family after the killing and that he meant it then and he still means it now.

It was not “‘my intention to blame any specific group for the actions what — it was obviously a deeply disturbed individual," he said. “That was really in 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. 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’d have felt the same way."

In an emotional moment during his monologue, Kimmel said he did not mean to imply that there was anything humorous about the assassination of Kirk.

"It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man," Kimmel said, his voice breaking with emotion. "I don’t think there's anything funny about it."

The opening of Kimmel's show featured a montage of clips of the frenzied media coverage of his monologue before the camera cut to him dressed as a bear and Guillermo Rodriguez dressed as a banana.

“Maybe we should ... change?” the pair said to start the show.

In a short sound bite, ABC previewed a snippet of Kimmel's monologue tonight.

“If you’re just joining us, we are pre-empting your regularly scheduled encore episode of 'Celebrity Family Feud' to bring you this special report," Kimmel jokes in the bite, which aired about 45 minutes before the episode is scheduled. "I’m happy to be here tonight."

Walter and Leesa Bates, of Beaverton, Oregon, said they were seated next to Kimmel's parents during the taping.

Leesa Bates said his mother apologized to the couple in advance if she cried.

According to the Bateses, Kimmel's mom did end up getting teary-eyed as Kimmel discussed his comments.

Trump responded on Truth Social tonight to news of Kimmel's return, questioning why ABC would want “someone back who does so poorly, who’s not funny and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE.”

"I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back," he wrote.

Without providing any evidence, Trump accused Kimmel of being “yet another arm of the DNC,” saying it would be “a major Illegal Campaign Contribution.”

Referring to his legal settlement with ABC last year — in which the network agreed to pay him $15 million over a dispute centered on an interview in which he alleged anchor George Stephanopoulos defamed him — Trump appeared to threaten further legal action.

“I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do,” he wrote, adding that, “This one sounds even more lucrative.”

Audience member Veronica Ament described the energy in the room as “awesome.”

Kimmel "wanted to reiterate that he never meant any ill will from what he said, and he wasn’t targeting any certain group when he made his joke,” Ament said.

Kimmel acknowledged some of the conservative figures who had spoken out against the decision to pull him off the air, according to Ament, who said being at the taping felt like a “historical moment."

"I have a sore throat; I almost lost my voice. Everybody was so happy. It was a full audience,” she said. “It was emotional, but everyone was just so loud. They said we’re the best audience of 2025.”

People who caught the taping of Kimmel's return began exiting the theater just after 7 p.m. PT.

Many people were stopped by media as they left, sharing tidbits from Kimmel's monologue and their initial reactions.

Attendees stream out of the taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Among them was Nino Bodmann, of Austria, who had gotten tickets for Kimmel’s taping right before it was pulled off the air.

“We just thought, ‘Oh, man, that’s not good. You cannot see the show now,” Bodmann said. “And then it came back, so now it’s an extra special show.”

Bodmann said Kimmel talked “a lot about Trump" and how he "got canceled.”

As the audience trickled out, a small line of police blocked off the area near the curb as traffic squeezed by.

Even though the audiences of more than 70 ABC affiliates won’t be able to watch “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” when the late-night show returns tonight, Kimmel may still get a ratings boost.

That’s because, after nearly a week of staying silent, Kimmel is finally expected to address Disney’s decision to suspend his show last Wednesday, setting off a free speech firestorm.

Late-night TV ratings have been falling for years as audiences’ viewing habits are moving away from broadcast TV toward streaming and social media, and Kimmel’s pattern has mirrored broader industry trends. According to Nielsen, during the second quarter of 2025, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” averaged 1.77 million viewers, down dramatically from a decade ago, when, Nielsen says, Kimmel averaged 2.4 million viewers.

But when Disney pulled his show last week, Kimmel suddenly became the hottest man in Hollywood.

An attendee inside the taping said Kimmel is now in the theater.

Viewers at home won't get to watch Kimmel's monologue until 11:35 p.m. ET when it airs on ABC.

As of 5:46 p.m. PT, Kimmel had not yet addressed the audience, according to an attendee who texted NBC News.

However, an opening comedian had taken the stage already.

Disney’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show was a “dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation,” more than 400 Hollywood celebrities wrote in an open letter the American Civil Liberties Union released yesterday.

“We the people must never accept government threats to our freedom of speech,” the letter said. “Efforts by leaders to pressure artists, journalists, and companies with retaliation for their speech strike at the heart of what it means to live in a free country.”

The stars who signed the letter include: Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Billy Crystal, Robert De Niro, Jane Fonda, Selena Gomez, Tom Hanks, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Joaquin Phoenix, Ben Stiller, Meryl Streep and Kerry Washington.

Hours after the letter was published, ABC announced Kimmel's return.

Read the full story here.

An audience member inside the theater told NBC News that other people are still being loaded into the theater.

Attendees file into Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

As of 5:03 p.m. PT, the taping had not yet started.

The street is quieting down now that the taping is about to begin.

But a small gaggle of anti-Trump protesters is still addressing passersby and urging them to continue resisting Trump and his administration.

A banner stating “Trump Must Go Now!” has been erected before the theater. Protesters now lead the crowd in a chant: “Trump must go. Jimmy Kimmel stays.”

Lolo, a political content creator who declined to give her full name because, she said, she has been stalked before, said she saved some anti-Trump signs from other protests against Disney over the weekend.

Lolo outside of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Wearing a colorful blow-up dinosaur costume, Lolo, who has a YouTube channel called Lolo’s Lounge, recorded herself as she protested outside. She said that she’s not particularly a fan of Kimmel but that she would protest against silencing anybody.

“I think it is imperative that all of us find a way to resist autocracy,” she said. “And so for me, because I have time and inclination and some knowledge about the players, I want to be out here.”

Holding a bright yellow sign that reads “Jimmy Kimmel Lies," Perry Caravello, is the sole anti-Kimmel protester on Hollywood Boulevard.

Perry Caravello being interviewed outside of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Caravello, an actor, said he personally does not like Kimmel, having worked with him on the 2003 movie “Windy City Heat,” which Kimmel helped produce.

He is among those who criticized Kimmel for his comments in the aftermath of Kirk's killing, calling them "lies."

"He’s got a responsibility as a broadcaster to tell the truth,” Caravello said, adding that what he said was "not funny."

The man accused of shooting at an ABC affiliate in Sacramento, California, last week may have been motivated in part by that network’s suspension of Kimmel, authorities said yesterday.

There’s “circumstantial evidence” that Anibal Hernandez Santana, 64, had “a political motive behind” the shooting Friday, Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho said.

“So there are some indications here that the motive behind the shooting of the ABC news station was political in kind,” he said.

Read the full story here.

Jessica Brown, a member of SAG-AFTRA who was rallying outside the theater, described Kimmel’s return as “a testament of what happens when community bands together and when we’re united we can make a difference.”

Jessica Brown poses for a portrait outside of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Brown showed up to Hollywood Boulevard this afternoon with a mission: Send in several massive banners that are filled with signatures of support for Kimmel. Brown doesn't have tickets herself to the taping, but she said she had collected signatures the street from people who came out to protest while Kimmel was removed from air.

“I don’t know what Jimmy would do with them. He could throw them away as far as I know,” Brown said. “But they’re for Jimmy.”

While she's happy the late night host is returning, Brown said the “battle’s not over,” yet, adding that protesters will be taking their complaints to Sinclair and Nexstar next.

Dressed head to toe in a star-spangled outfit and matching face paint, a man who goes by Dandidi said he is on Hollywood Boulevard to protest the Trump administration. Calling himself the “Harlequin of Liberty” and waving a giant “Liberty” sign, Dandidi said he believes Kimmel’s return is a win for the First Amendment.

Dandidi outside of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

He applauded the people who “pressured [Disney] by taking action — no thoughts and prayers, action — by canceling their Disney, putting that heat under them.”

“So please, now that Disney has done the right thing, come back into the fold,” Dandidi told onlookers on the street. “Renew your subscription. Support Disney, because they are standing up for liberty. They are fighting tyranny at great risk.”

In about an hour, the handful of people who scored tickets to today's taping will take their seats inside the theater. Outside, the enthusiasm from fans was apparent.

Walter and Leesa Bates Bates, of Beaverton, Oregon, said they "dumb lucked" their way into getting tickets because originally they didn't think they'd get to catch Kimmel before they headed home.

"Now we're here the one day we can use them [the tickets]" Lisa Bates said, adding that she supports "free speech."

As for what Kimmel might say tonight? She said that she has "no idea" but that he is likely to "work to make his words very particular and say what he wants to say in a way where he can't be called out for being offensive."

Kevin Winhard, who is visiting from Germany, said he requested the tickets online three to four weeks ago, “pretty much before this disaster.” He said he was “disappointed” when the show got pulled off air. But now, he’s “super happy it’s going to return.”

Gabriela De Vries poses for a portrait outside of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Talk show personality and comedian Guillermo Rodriguez, who has become a staple of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" posted a short but sweet Instagram post ahead of the show's return tonight.

Rodriguez shared an image of him embracing a smiling Kimmel, writing in the caption, “We are back full of love.”

Four Democratic lawmakers are opening a probe into Nexstar and Sinclair, two major TV station owners that are refusing to air Kimmel’s late-night talk show.

In a letter, first obtained by NBC News, the lawmakers asked the corporate heads of both companies for more information about their decisions to pre-empt airings of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “how those decisions may relate to regulatory issues pending with the Trump administration.”

“If you suspended a late-night comedian’s show in part to seek regulatory favors from the administration, you have not only assisted the administration in eroding First Amendment freedoms but also create the appearance of a possible quid-pro-quo arrangement that could implicate federal anti-corruption laws,” the lawmakers wrote.

The seven-page letter was sent by Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland. It is addressed to Perry A. Sook, the chairman of Nexstar Media Group, and Christopher S. Ripley, the president and chief executive of Sinclair Broadcast Group. Together, Nexstar and Sinclair account for roughly 70 ABC affiliates across the United States.

Read the full story here.

Gregg Donovan, a longtime employee of Hollywood Star Tours, hopes to catch Kimmel to personally congratulate him on his return.

Gregg Donovan on Hollywood Boulevard before the return taping of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"  Alex Welsh for NBC News

“Hollywood missed him, and so did the tourists,” Donavan said. He said taking him off the air “was bad for business, because they wanted to get tickets. Believe it or not, he brings a lot of business.”

Donovan was walking up and down Hollywood Boulevard holding a sign that reads “Welcome Back Jimmy" with a heart emoji.

He said he has known Kimmel and his crew for years and was sad to think they might be losing their jobs.

“It was the week that laughter died in Hollywood," he said, referring to ABC’s decision last week to pre-empt the late-night show. "That’s how it felt."

NBC News’ Chloe Melas reports on what to expect from Kimmel’s monologue as his late-night show returns to ABC tonight, except on affiliate stations operated by Sinclair and Nexstar.

Nexstar joins Sinclair in keeping Jimmy Kimmel off ABC affiliate stations

03:29

According to an Economist/YouGov survey conducted Friday to Monday, 43% of adults said they have favorable perceptions of Kimmel, while 37% have unfavorable ones. The partisan split is enormous: Kimmel is seen favorably by 76% of Democrats and unfavorably by 73% of Republicans. And it extends to ABC’s initial decision last week to suspend him: 83% of Democrats disapprove of that move, while 73% of Republicans support it.

The partisan fault lines are hardly surprising, and they most likely go back much further than the current drama. Beyond his frequent jabs at Trump, Kimmel has sided with Democrats on the air in policy fights, relied heavily on Democrats in booking political guests and raised money for Joe Biden’s campaign last year. That the two sides of the political divide would see him so differently only seems logical.

In a previous era, when network television commanded massive built-in audiences, late-night hosts tended to lampoon both parties equally and refrain from sharing their own views. To come down on one side would be to needlessly alienate the other, the thinking went.

Read the full analysis here.

Earlier today, Kimmel broke his silence after his brief suspension from the airwaves, posting a picture to Instagram of himself and Norman Lear, the television producer who was best known for his progressive activism.

Lear died in 2023 at age 101. Kimmel captioned his photo, which features his arm around Lear, “Missing this guy today.”

Lear developed beloved sitcoms such as “All in the Family” “Good Times,” “The Jeffersons” and “One Day at a Time.” His work was defined by being unafraid to tackle social issues long considered taboo.

Read the full story here.

Two and a half hours before today’s taping, it’s relatively quiet on Hollywood Boulevard.

Media and pedestrians gather outside of the return taping of Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday.  Alex Welsh for NBC News

Aside from a lone man hoping to score standby tickets, audience members haven’t shown up yet.

But camera crews are already set up around the theater, with some camping out in the back hoping to catch a glimpse of Kimmel when he enters. A security guard said guests will start entering the venue around 3 p.m. PT.

The calm is quite a contrast to yesterday's scene, as protesters crowded in Hollywood carrying anti-Trump signs to demonstrate against ABC and Disney for pulling the show.

Glen Powell and Sarah McLachlan, both entertainers with new Disney-backed projects, are expected to appear as guests when “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” returns to ABC stations tonight.

Powell created and stars in “Chad Powers,” a sports comedy series scheduled to premiere on Disney-owned Hulu on Sept. 30. 

McLachlan appears in the music documentary “Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery” from ABC News Studios, which dropped on Hulu and Disney+ on Sunday. 

McLachlan, the Canadian singer of “Angel” and “Building a Mystery,” was also a noteworthy player in the entertainment community’s backlash to ABC's pulling Kimmel’s show from the air indefinitely on Sept. 17. At the documentary’s premiere at The Ford amphitheater in Los Angeles on Sunday night, McLachlan addressed the crowd.

According to video posted online by The Hollywood Reporter, she said she and multiple other artists featured in the film had chosen not to perform that night “but instead to stand in solidarity in support of free speech.” She didn’t mention Kimmel by name.

Kimmel's show will air on ABC tonight at 11:35 p.m. ET and 11:35 p.m. PT.

But many households across the United States still may not see the show. Sinclair and Nexstar, two major local TV operators, said they will not resume airing it. Together, Nexstar and Sinclair account for about 70 ABC affiliates, meaning Kimmel’s return will not be available over broadcast to tens of millions in the United States.

Still, given the interest from the general public, clips from tonight are likely to surface on the show's official social media pages shortly after it airs. And, of course, people will be rapidly circulating buzzy moments from tonight all over the internet.

For those who have an earlier bedtime on Tuesday, or just prefer catching up later, the episode will also be available on Hulu, as well as Hulu on Disney+, on Wednesday.