Jimmy Kimmel will be back on ABC on September 23, 2025, but not on every station. The network halted production on his show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live," on September 17, 2025, after his comments on the September 15th episode regarding the death of conservative host Charlie Kirk sparked outrage.
“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,” the Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, stated in their announcement. “It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. 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,” the statement continued. The statement didn't directly address concerns about perceived attempts to silence Kimmel amid pressure from the Trump administration, which threatened penalties against ABC affiliates’ broadcast licenses.
Sinclair Broadcast Group, which preempted the show before ABC's suspension, will broadcast local news instead. Nexstar Media Group has also declared plans to continue preempting the program. The duration of these preemptions remains unclear. The show typically records around 4:30 p.m. Pacific time and airs after local news on most ABC affiliates nationwide. It usually doesn't air new episodes on Fridays. A total of three new episodes were missed during the production halt.