The former executive reportedly made the call to pull Kimmel from the air after his late-night remarks about Charlie Kirk’s murder.

Former Disney CEO Bob Iger says Jimmy Kimmel was suspended over ‘bad taste’

The former executive reportedly made the call to pull Kimmel from the air after his late-night remarks about Charlie Kirk's murder.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

EW's editorial guidelines

June 24, 2026 12:08 p.m. ET

Bob Iger and Jimmy Kimmel. Credit:

- Former Disney CEO Bob Iger offers his first public comments on Jimmy Kimmel's 2025 suspension.

- Iger presided over ABC's parent company when Kimmel was temporarily pulled from the air after remarking about Charlie Kirk's murder.

- Now, Iger denies that the move was politically motivated, arguing that the higher-ups felt Kimmel's comments were in "bad taste."

Former Disney CEO Bob Iger is defending ABC's controversial decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel from the air last year.

Iger, who was a top executive at the company for nearly three decades, presided over ABC's parent company when *Jimmy Kimmel Live* was temporarily pulled from ABC's lineup in September 2025. The shocking move came after Kimmel upset some with his comments about the killing of conservative pundit Charlie Kirk.

In a new interview with the* **Financial Times*, Iger publicly discussed the controversy for the first time and argued that the suspension has been misrepresented as a political concession to the Trump administration.

"That was not the case," Iger said, adding of Kimmel's remarks, "We thought it was in bad taste."

The turmoil stemmed from Kimmel discussing Kirk's alleged killer during his monologue, saying, "We had some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang 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."

Jimmy Kimmel and Bob Iger on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'.

Randy Holmes/Getty

Along with inciting the outrage of the president, the comments led Trump-appointed FCC Chair Brendan Carr to publicly encourage broadcasters to preempt *Jimmy Kimmel Live*, which station owners Sinclair and Nexstar did later in the day. ABC then suspended Kimmel's long-running late-night show.

Iger and former co-chairman of Disney Entertainment Dana Walden were behind the Sept. 17 decision to put the show on hold, according to reports from several outlets, including *The New York Times*, *The Wall Street Journal,* and Deadline. Insiders stated that the duo spoke on the phone with Kimmel for what was described as a "thoughtful conversation" hours before his show was set to start filming.

Jimmy Kimmel extends ABC contract in wake of Charlie Kirk controversy, feud with Trump

Donald Trump attacks Jimmy Kimmel over Epstein files joke: 'Get the bum off the air'

Pointing to the fact that Kimmel was reinstated a week later, Iger added, "We just wanted him to acknowledge that it was an ill-timed and probably inappropriate comment."

Though Kimmel was back on the air the following week, Disney faced backlash for its move, including protests, calls for a boycott, and a lot of public support for Kimmel, including from current and former late-night hosts, as well as hundreds of entertainment industry figures, including Tom Hanks, Regina Hall, Jennifer Aniston, Pedro Pascal, and Meryl Streep.

Iger even caught flak from another former Disney CEO, Michael Eisner, who did not explicitly name him but complained on social media, "Where has all the leadership gone? If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the First Amendment?"

Jimmy Kimmel on his late-night show, 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'.

Randy Holmes/Getty

Since then, Kimmel has continued taking aim at Trump and his administration, and in turn, the president has repeatedly slammed Kimmel's broadcast and called for his termination. Kimmel recently came under fire in April after quipping that First Lady Melania Trump had "a glow like an expectant widow" during his mock White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Days later, the actual correspondents' dinner on Saturday was interrupted when an alleged gunman opened fire at the Washington Hilton. Both Trump and the First Lady condemned Kimmel, claimed that he incited violence with his remarks, and called for the late-night host to be "immediately fired by Disney and ABC."

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our ******EW Dispatch newsletter******.***

The firing did not come, and later that month, the FCC ordered Disney into an early renewal process for its ABC station licenses. As for Disney's response to the drama, Iger says he "wholeheartedly" endorsed the company's decision not to punish Kimmel.

"I’m thoroughly supportive," Iger said, referring to the early review. "It’s what we anticipated needing to do if the government’s threats turned into action."

Iger's recent comments come after the longtime CEO exited Disney — for the second time — and handed the role to successor Josh D’Amaro earlier this year. Iger has held the top position twice: from 2005 to 2020, when he was succeeded by Bob Chapek, and again from 2022 to 2026.

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Late”