Stop the Rumors: Jimmy Kimmel's Not Fired, and Isn't Going Anywhere
Did ABC just axe Jimmy Kimmel? A last-minute preemption of Jimmy Kimmel Live hours before taping set off a social media meltdown, drew political hot takes, and fueled cancellation rumors. Spoiler: he’s not fired—here’s what actually happened.
If you saw 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' suddenly vanish and started wondering if ABC quietly canned Kimmel, you were not alone. The show got yanked hours before taping, Twitter did what Twitter does, and even political figures jumped in to pour gasoline on it. Here is what is actually going on, minus the panic.
The short version
No, ABC has not fired Jimmy Kimmel. The show is on ice until further notice. Kimmel's team and Disney have been doing virtual meetings to figure out a path back, but so far, no deal. As one person familiar with the talks told Deadline:
"It is an ongoing discussion, with a lot of distrust on one side. There is no light at the end of the tunnel - yet."
How it unraveled
- Sept 15, 2025: On that night's episode, Kimmel made controversial remarks tied to the fatal shooting of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk. The bit set off a wave of outrage from conservatives, including the Trump administration.
- Sept 17, 2025: Disney, which owns ABC, told the show to stop recording new episodes and suspended it indefinitely. Per the reporting, the call came directly from Dana Walden, who runs Disney Entertainment.
- Soon after: Nexstar, which owns 32 ABC affiliates, said it would not air the show.
- Same window: 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' was preempted just hours before taping, which is what kicked the fan speculation into overdrive that Kimmel had been fired.
The backlash, from all directions
The suspension set off a new mess. On one side, conservatives were already fuming over Kimmel's segment. On the other, the decision to shelve the show sparked protests outside Disney headquarters, with people calling it a free speech issue. A handful of industry voices chimed in, too: Tatiana Maslany and Damon Lindelof publicly pushed back on the suspension, and Maslany reportedly canceled her Disney+ subscription over it.
Inside Disney, not everyone is thrilled either. Some execs think CEO Bob Iger and Dana Walden folded too fast to political pressure, and a few are drawing unflattering comparisons to Disney's earlier fight over Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' law. In other words: this is not just a late-night kerfuffle, it's an inside-baseball headache for the company.
Where this leaves Kimmel and the show
Right now, it is a stalemate. The show is paused, Disney is not rolling cameras, Nexstar stations say they are out, and the meetings between Kimmel's camp and Disney have not cracked it. There is a version of this where cooler heads prevail and the show quietly returns. There is also a version where this drags on because everyone is dug in. For now, the only thing we know for sure: Kimmel has not been fired, but 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' is benched until further notice.