NEW YORK (AP) — Jimmy Kimmel offered no apologies in his return to late-night television and, in an emotional monologue where he appeared close to tears, said he was not trying to joke about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. He also paid tribute to Kirk’s widow.
Nearly 8 million people had watched Kimmel’s first show back from a nearly one-week suspension on YouTube by midmorning Wednesday. Typically, he gets about 1.8 million viewers each night on television. Ratings were due to be released later in the day.
In his first public comments following the suspension, Kimmel did not hesitate to joke about his frequent foil, President Donald Trump, and credited him for what is expected to be a ratings bonanza.
“He tried,” Kimmel said. “He did his best to cancel me. Instead, he forced millions of people to watch the show. That backfired bigly. He might have to release the Epstein files to distract us from this now.”
Kimmel stressed, “It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man. I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.” He praised Kirk’s widow, Erika, for her “selfless act of grace” in publicly forgiving her husband’s killer.
He added: “I don’t think what I’m going to say is going to make much of a difference. If you like me, you like me. If you don’t, you don’t. I have no illusions about changing anyone’s mind.”
Andrew Kolvet, a spokesperson for Turning Point USA, the organization Kirk founded, stated that Kimmel’s monologue was “not good enough” and called for an apology. However, comedian Ben Stiller praised it as a “brilliant monologue.”
The incident has ignited a national conversation about free speech and censorship, with Trump criticizing ABC for welcoming Kimmel back and hinting at legal action.
Kimmel was welcomed back on stage with a standing ovation and chants of “Jimmy, Jimmy.” One audience member described Kimmel’s tribute to Kirk’s widow as a “very moving moment” that had both him and his wife in tears.
