Bill Maher has expressed his support for Jimmy Kimmel, although he said he disagreed with his comments about the assassination of Charlie Kirk that led to the indefinite suspension of the latter’s show on ABC.
Kimmel had criticized the MAGA movement’s reaction to the arrest of Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old charged with the murder of the right-wing activist.
The host of Real Time with Bill Maher defended Kimmel, saying, “I don’t think what he said was exactly right,” but added he “should not lose his job over it.”
Why It Matters
ABC, owned by Disney, announced Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be “preempted indefinitely,” sparking criticism over whether it had caved to political pressure.
Maher’s monologue adds to the chorus of disapproval among late-night TV hosts at Kimmel’s indefinite suspension as a debate rages about whether free speech in the U.S. is under threat.
What To Know
Maher described Kimmel as “my friend” and expressed his support following his suspension by ABC for comments he made about the suspect in Kirk’s killing at a Utah campus, for which Tyler Robinson, 22 has been charged.
Kimmel had criticized the MAGA movement’s reaction to the arrest of Robinson, accusing it of “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them” and trying “to score political points from it.”
Kimmel also mocked President Donald Trump’s response to the killing, comparing it to a child mourning a goldfish. Broadcast regulator, the Federal Communications Commission, Chair Brendan Carr threatened investigations and license reviews at ABC over the remarks.
In his monologue on Friday, Maher said that it had been 24 years since he made comments on ABC that got him fired, after which Kimmel took up his slot.
“I got canceled before canceled even had a culture,” Maher said, referring to remarks he had made on ABC’s show Politically Incorrect about the 9/11 hijackers less than a week after the attacks.
“I am with you, I support you and, on the bright side, you don’t have to pretend anymore that you like Disneyland,” Maher said Friday, referring to ABC’s owners.
Maher also described “intimidation on the right” and that while he did not think that what Kimmel said was right, he should not lose his job over it.
Maher said Kimmel’s comment that MAGA was trying to characterize the suspect as anything but one of them, because his family was MAGA, “was not correct” because it is not known where Robinson’s political leadings lie.
“As if a 22-year-old with a trans girlfriend never rebelled against their family,” Maher said, “Jimmy’s wrong, I think, to put him in one team,” but added that he had “every right” to be wrong.
Other late-night hosts have rallied to Kimmel’s defense, such as Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers.
“I do know Jimmy Kimmel, and he’s a decent, funny and loving guy, and I hope he comes back,” Fallon said, while Colbert said on his show, “Tonight, we are all Jimmy Kimmel.”
Kimmel’s suspension was celebrated by the Trump administration, raising fears over the implications for the First Amendment defending free speech.
Meanwhile, David Letterman said Thursday during a discussion at the Atlantic Festival. “You can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian criminal administration in the Oval Office.”
Trump took a swipe at Letterman in a Truth Social post in which he called him “highly overrated…whose ratings were never very good, either.”
What People Are Saying
Bill Maher: “He [Kimmel] said the MAGA crowd was trying to characterize the assassin as anything but one of them, because the guy’s, the 22-year-old kid, his family was MAGA. As if a 22-year-old with a trans girlfriend never rebelled against their family. But was he on the left? I don’t know that either.”
Maher added: “Jimmy’s wrong…but Jimmy has every right to be wrong.”
President Donald Trump during his state visit to the U.K: “Jimmy Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings more than anything else, and he said a horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk.”
What Happens Next
Kimmel is reported to be exploring legal options to leave his ABC contract early, which will raise speculation over whether he will launch an independent podcast or streaming show, or join a rival network, as the case is likely to become a flashpoint over political speech, media independence, and corporate censorship.