Disney Bosses To Huddle With Jimmy Kimmel After His Show’s Sudden Yanking From ABC Amid FCC Firestorm, Trump Threats

Disney executives will reportedly meet with Jimmy Kimmel on Thursday next week to discuss the future of his late-night talk show, which ABC pulled after the host’s remarks about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk drew backlash from the Federal Communications Commission and owners of some partner TV networks.

In the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” episode on Sept. 15, Kimmel accused Republicans of trying to gain political points off Kirk’s murder and also mocked President Donald Trump’s reaction to the shooting.

Bloomberg reported the planned meeting in a report published late Thursday, which also noted that Disney would like to put the show back on the air. Disney or ABC has not asked Kimmel to apologize, nor does Kimmel have any plans to do so, according to the report, which cited people with knowledge of the matter. Kimmel, a vocal critic of Trump, has hosted the late-night show since 2003.

Meanwhile, the president has threatened to revoke the licenses of TV networks that consistently criticize him. “When you have a network and you have evening shows, and all they do is hit Trump,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday. “I would think maybe their license should be taken away.”

The day before, he cheered ABC’s decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel Live. In the last few months, Trump has become increasingly vocal in his criticism of media outlets and anchors he perceives as hostile. He has repeatedly called for CBS, ABC, and NBC to remove some of their talk show hosts — pressure that seemingly contributed to CBS canceling “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” two months back.

On Stocktwits, retail-trader sentiment for DIS was ‘extremely bearish’ (5/100), with the score reaching its lowest point of the year as of late Thursday after the stock fell over 1% in the regular session. 

Several users on the platform expressed concern over the alleged political bias and crackdown shown by the Trump administration.

“Disney is canceling a comedian for telling jokes? I listened to what Jimmy Kimmel said, and there was nothing offensive at all. Yet on Fox, they just said in all seriousness that homeless people should be killed. This is disgraceful!!” posted one user.

“$DIS cancelled all my subscriptions. Cancel culture is back,” said another user.

Earlier this week, Trump said he is filing a $15-billion defamation and libel lawsuit against the New York Times, and accused the newspaper of serving the Democratic Party and publishing false and defamatory reports about him.

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