Last week, we reported that ABC had indefinitely suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! indefinitely over vile comments that he made about the assassination of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Now, Kimmel has finally learned his fate at ABC when it comes to his indefinite suspension.
Kimmel Learns His Fate
The Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, has backtracked and announced that Kimmel will be returning to late night on Tuesday.
“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,” a Disney spokesperson told Daily Mail.
“It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive,” the spokesperson continued. “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.”
At the time of this writing, no further details have been provided.
Kimmel’s Suspension
This all started last Monday night, when Kimmel falsely suggested that Kirk’s assassin was “MAGA.” In reality, the shooter was a radicalized young man who held far-left ideologies, according to investigators.
“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 Monday night.
The backlash against Kimmel was swift. Last Wednesday, Kimmel was shocked to learn that he had been suspended indefinitely. He got this news mere hours before he was set to go on the air for his nightly program.
Friends of Kimmel then told Daily Mail that the 57 year-old comedian was “angry but unbowed.” He reportedly firmly believed that Disney, which is ABC’s parent company, caved to political pressure.
Check out Kimmel’s comments that started all of this in the video below.
Kimmel Felt ‘Betrayed’ By ABC
A source close to Kimmel later confirmed that he felt “betrayed” by the suspension.
“I’ve never seen Jimmy this angry,” one of Kimmel’s producers said.
“Jimmy has always pushed boundaries, that’s what his audience expects,” said another show insider. “The idea that one comment could sideline him after everything he’s given ABC — he’s gutted, but he’s not sorry.”
Indeed, multiple insiders have alleged that Kimmel was not planning to apologize on his show last Wednesday night, should it have been allowed to air.
Find out more about that in the video below.
It was initially reported that Disney let Kimmel know that if he wanted his show back, he would have to make a “meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA.” This is the organization that Kirk founded in 2012 when he was only 18.
It’s unclear at this time if Kimmel actually did either of these things.
Kimmel himself has yet to comment on the news that his show will be returning to ABC. It will certainly be interesting to see how Jimmy Kimmel Live! goes over tomorrow night!