Jimmy Kimmel used his June 2 show to mock Donald Trump’s latest threats aimed at late-night hosts, while also reminding viewers that his jokes have already helped earn mainstream recognition. The exchange adds pressure to an industry repeatedly targeted by pol
Jimmy Kimmel walked onstage on June 2 with a simple message for a president who says he’s coming for late-night TV.
Kimmel joked about President Donald Trump’s push to target late-night hosts. saying he “battles cost ABC ‘billions’” after his clashes with Trump. He then leaned into Trump’s latest warning that other late-night figures will be next. using a mix of sarcasm and pointed memory about Stephen Colbert’s show—now canceled.
During his monologue. Kimmel responded to the idea that he will be “next. ” quipping. “Shouldn’t the president of the United States have more important things to focus on. like finding a replacement for Milli Vanilli at his Coachella from hella on July 4?” He framed the moment around a wider pattern of artists stepping back from a televised event connected to the Great American State Fair. He added another pop-culture jab about attention and priorities. saying. “I think Captain Cankleroo might be upset because our show won a Peabody Award on Sunday night.”.
He went further, explaining that the award was real and not a “FIFA Peabody.” Then he pivoted again—back to Trump and back to the presidency—underscoring that the public attention around late-night jokes often lands in places it wasn’t meant to.
The president’s escalation started in a Truth Social post on June 1. where Trump bragged he has “taken out many bad Political ‘Leaders’ and Pundits” over the last two weeks. In that post, Trump named “REALLY DUMB Stephen Colbert of CBS” and suggested additional late-night hosts will follow. He described “three more limping Late Night Talk Show Hosts. ” including “Low Ratings Bill Maher and his Fake ‘Laughing Machine. ’” and wrote that they are “to go.”.
Kimmel didn’t just dismiss the warning—he mocked it. “I’m not sure I’d be calling us limping when you’ve got cankles like this, honey,” he said, showing a photo of Trump’s foot.
Trump’s threats have been a recurring thread in his feud with late-night TV. Kimmel is among the most vocal critics in the genre, and the president has repeatedly warned that hosts who joke about him could face consequences.
The backdrop for Kimmel’s remarks is Stephen Colbert’s “The Late Show. ” which CBS has said was canceled for financial reasons rather than political ones. But the day after Colbert’s final show. Trump posted on Truth Social that Colbert’s CBS dismissal was “the ‘Beginning of the End’ for untalented. nasty. highly overpaid. not funny. and very poorly rated Late Night Television Hosts.” Trump added: “Others. of even less talent. to soon follow. May they all Rest in Peace!”.
Kimmel referenced that moment directly in his June 2 set, tying Trump’s threat cycle to the reality that Colbert’s program is now gone.
The president’s pressure campaign toward Kimmel is not new. In April. Trump called for Kimmel to be fired after the comedian made a joke about first lady Melania Trump being an “expectant widow.” ABC did not take action against Kimmel. Kimmel defended the remark as a “very light roast joke” about “their age difference and the look of joy we see on her face every time they’re together.”.
By May 31, Kimmel had added another layer to the confrontation: he received a Peabody Award for his late-night show.
In his speech. Kimmel joked he felt “pretty dumb” accepting the award and said that “making jokes about the president in America shouldn’t win you a prize.” He also said. “We have the right. guaranteed by the Constitution. to criticize and satirize our leaders. ” adding. “This is a right that many of us take for granted.”.
Standing behind that constitutional claim, Kimmel’s June 2 response made the stakes feel immediate: this is no longer just banter between a comedian and a president—it’s a clash where entertainment decisions, reputations, and careers are treated like bargaining chips.
The result is a late-night industry pulled between two realities: the tradition of satire and the political pressure that follows it. And in Kimmel’s telling, Trump’s latest warning doesn’t silence the jokes—it just changes the punchline.
Jimmy Kimmel Donald Trump late-night TV ABC Peabody Award Stephen Colbert The Late Show Truth Social Bill Maher constitutional right to criticize media and politics