Jimmy Kimmel Can't Hold Back Tears in the 2025 Finale

Jimmy Kimmel closed out 2025 by getting genuinely choked up on the final new Jimmy Kimmel Live! of the year. Not something you see every night at 11:35, and honestly, it felt earned.

Kimmel opened the show already emotional

From the show’s home in Hollywood, he started with a warm, sincere thanks to the audience and immediately got teary. He called 2025 a strange, hard year, apologized for getting emotional, and kept going anyway. The moment landed because it didn’t feel performative; it felt like a guy who hit his limit and still wanted to say thank you.

"This has been a strange year. It’s been a hard year... we appreciate your support, your enthusiasm... you literally pulled us out of a hole. I know there are a lot harder jobs, but this is not an easy job to do."

He talked about how the nonstop bad news cycle can be overwhelming even when your job is telling jokes, and said the notes from viewers who say the show makes them feel less alone help keep him going.

He wrapped the monologue on a hopeful note, reminding everyone there’s still "more good in this country than bad," and wished the audience a happy holiday.

Context for the tears

If you’re wondering why this particular sign-off hit so hard, the year behind the show was bumpy. There was a dust-up earlier in 2025 over comments Kimmel made about conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, and the fallout was swift.

• Following that controversy, Disney briefly suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! — a short pause that lasted less than a week and sparked pushback from fans.

So when Kimmel thanked viewers for 'pulling us out of a hole,' that wasn’t abstract. It was a nod to a rough patch the show had to ride out in public. Backstage realities, right there on the surface.

All told, it was an honest, unexpectedly tender sign-off for 2025 — and a reminder that even late-night hosts are just people trying to get through a weird year with a little humor intact.