Jimmy Kimmel Live! returned to the air less than a week after his highly publicized ABC suspension. Following six days of intense headlines and debate over the concept of freedom of speech, Jimmy Kimmel took the stage and received a standing ovation from his audience in Los Angeles; his parents were also present, as revealed by an attendee. However, it was Kimmel’s monologue that captured the nation’s attention.
If you missed Jimmy Kimmel Live!, we have a summary of his monologue below.
How Can You Watch Jimmy Kimmel Live!?
Most cable viewers can watch Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC. However, stations operated by Nexstar Media Group or Sinclair Broadcast Group did not broadcast Kimmel’s September 23 episode.
How to Stream Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Fans can stream Kimmel’s return episode on either Hulu or Disney+ after its release.
What Did Jimmy Kimmel Say About Charlie Kirk in His Monologue?
Kimmel began his monologue by clarifying that his “MAGA gang” remark was not intended as a joke about Charlie Kirk‘s murder.
“It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” Kimmel stated, his voice filled with emotion. “I don’t think there’s anything funny about it. … [It wasn’t] my intention to blame any specific group for the actions what — it was obviously a deeply disturbed individual,” he added, referring to Kirk’s suspected shooter, Tyler Robinson.
“That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make, but I understand that, for some, it felt either ill-timed or unclear, or maybe both,” the comedian acknowledged. “And for those who think I did point a finger, I get why you’re upset. If the situation were reversed, there’s a good chance I’d have felt the same way.”
Kimmel made sure to commend Kirk’s widowed wife, Erika Kirk, for forgiving her late husband’s killer.
“She forgave him. That is an example we should follow,” Kimmel continued. “If you believe in the teachings of Jesus, as I do, there it was. That’s it. A selfless act of grace. Forgiveness from a grieving widow. It touched me deeply, and I hope it touches many. And if there’s anything we should take from this tragedy to carry forward, I hope it can be that.”
Kimmel then addressed Donald Trump‘s calls for him and several of his fellow late-night TV hosts — including Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon — to be removed from the airwaves.
“The president of the United States made it very clear he wants to see me and the hundreds of people who work here fired from our jobs,” Kimmel pointed out. “Our leader celebrates Americans losing their livelihoods because he can’t take a joke. He managed to squeeze [Stephen] Colbert out of CBS, then he turned his sights on me, and now he’s openly rooting for NBC to fire Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers and the hundreds of Americans who work for their shows who don’t make millions of dollars. And I hope that if that happens or if there’s even any hint of that happening, you will be ten times as loud as you were this week.”
Regarding Disney’s decision to pull him off the air, Kimmel admitted he “did not agree with that decision, and I told them that, and we had many conversations.”
“I shared my point of view; they shared theirs,” he explained. “We talked it through, and at the end, even though they didn’t have to — this is a giant company — they welcomed me back on the air, and I thank them for that.”
Finally, one of Kimmel’s major talking points was about freedom of speech. He noted that he has spoken with comedians from other countries, including Russia, stating, “Our freedom to speak is what they admire most about this country, and that’s something I’m embarrassed to say I took for granted until they pulled my friend Stephen off the air and tried to coerce the affiliates who run our show in your cities to take my show off the air. That’s not legal.”
