ABC’s late-night program “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will resume airing Tuesday night, following a week-long suspension triggered by controversial remarks made by host Jimmy Kimmel about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, on Monday released a statement explaining the decision.
“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. 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 suspension came after FCC Chair Brendan Carr and major affiliate networks threatened ABC over Kimmel’s monologue.
In those remarks, Kimmel insinuated that Kirk’s alleged assassin, Tyler Robinson, was a member of the "MAGA gang." He mocked President Donald Trump’s response to the death, lashing out at the White House for lowering US flags to half-staff.
"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 on his show.
Kimmel continued his tirade, attacking Trump for discussing ballroom construction when asked about his thoughts on the assassination days later. "This is not how an adult grieves the murder of somebody he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish, OK?" Kimmel said.
Following the pulling of the show, reported CNN, protests erupted outside Disney offices in New York and Burbank, California, as well as outside the Hollywood theater where the show is filmed. Demonstrators voiced opposition to Disney’s decision to pull the show, citing concerns over censorship and political pressure.
On Monday, over 400 artists—including Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep—signed an open letter organized by the ACLU in support of Kimmel. The letter condemned the suspension and called for the protection of artistic expression.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Rosh Hashanah in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)