Jimmy Kimmel Live! was suspended indefinitely by ABC on Wednesday, September 17, due to comments they believed to be “insensitive.”
“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,” Disney explained in a statement on Monday, per The Wrap. “It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. 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.”
The network was pressured by the FCC and multiple station owners across the nation after Kimmel made jokes in his opening monologue about the death of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk.
“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 last Monday. He proceeded to show a clip of Donald Trump being asked about how he’s handling the death of his friend. The president quickly brushed off the question to talk about his ballroom addition to the White House.
Just one day after the suspension was announced, crews were photographed loading moving trucks with boxes out of the Jimmy Kimmel Live! studio.
