Jimmy Kimmel Challenges Trump to Talent Competition, Talks New ABC Deal

Jimmy Kimmel is excited to stay on the air for another year!

The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host addressed his one-year contract extension with ABC on Monday, December 8, to much enthusiasm from his studio audience.

Kimmel, 58, joked that the show would stay on the air until May 2027 “or until the world ends — whichever comes first.”

“I thought about it, I gave it a lot of thought, and decided I would like to spend less time with my family,” the comedian went on to quip. “So, to our audience here and at home, I’m honored and humbled to be part of your routine, whether it’s in bed at night or during your morning toilet time. It means a lot to me to have your attention.”

During his monologue on Monday, Kimmel also addressed President Donald Trump calling him a “horrible” host and promising to do a better job at hosting when he fronted the Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday, December 7. (“If I can’t beat out Jimmy Kimmel in terms of talent, then I don’t think I should be president,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office ahead of Sunday’s event.)

On Monday, Kimmel said, “I don’t think I’ve ever agreed with anything more than that.”

“As far as this whole ‘who has more talent’ thing goes, it seems like he’s challenging me to a contest? If so, I’m open to it. Let’s do it. Let’s have a talent competition,” Kimmel responded to Trump’s criticism.

Kimmel’s renewal comes after he was briefly suspended in September following comments he made in the wake of right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk’s fatal shooting.

“The MAGA Gang [is] desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said.

“In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving,” he said, mocking Trump, 79, for answering a question about how he was doing in the wake of Kirk’s death by talking about the renovation of the White House ballroom.

“He’s at the fourth stage of grief: construction,” Kimmel added. “This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish, OK?”

Kimmel’s comments drew the ire of many on the right, including Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr, who called for his suspension and urged ABC affiliates to pull the show. Two media groups, Sinclair and Nexstar, preempted the show on their owned and operated local ABC affiliate stations.

Kimmel returned to air after a six-day suspension on September 23.

“It’s been overwhelming. I’ve heard from a lot of people over the last six days,” Kimmel said on his first episode back. “I’ve heard from all the people in the last six days. Everyone I have ever known has reached out 10 or 11 times. Characters from my past, the guy who fired me from my first radio job in Seattle — where we are not airing tonight, by the way — his name is Larry.”

He continued, “You supported our show cared enough to do something about it to make your voices heard so that mine could be heard and I will never forget it. It takes courage to speak out against this administration and they did and they deserve credit for it and thanks, For telling their followers that our government cannot control what we do and do not say and TV.”