Overview
- ABC’s late-night host signed a one-year extension that moves his contract end date from May 2026 to May 2027, according to multiple reports.
- Bloomberg reported the agreement was reached months earlier and that the announcement was held back out of respect for Stephen Colbert, whose CBS show ends in May 2026.
- Kimmel informed his staff of the new deal on Monday, trade outlets reported.
- The extension comes after a nearly week-long September suspension over comments about Charlie Kirk’s assassination, with affiliates including Sinclair and Nexstar preempting the show and FCC Chair Brendan Carr criticizing Kimmel; Carr is scheduled to testify before the Senate Commerce Committee on December 17.
- When the show returned less than a week after the suspension, it drew roughly 6.26 million viewers despite continued preemptions in some markets.