Jimmy Kimmel reportedly faces uncertainty over his future at ABC.
After criticism over his jokes involving Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, ABC executives have become increasingly frustrated with him.
Insiders told Radar Online that Kimmel’s decision to repeat and defend the joke later further escalated the tension behind the scenes.
“The original joke was already seen as reckless internally. Doubling down on it made it potentially costly for the network,” the source told the outlet.
The controversy comes less than a year after Jimmy Kimmel faced criticism over his comments regarding the 2025 shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Although the late-night host publicly condemned the murder, critics accused him of politicizing the tragedy.
Kimmel remains under contract with ABC until May 2027 after signing a reported multimillion-dollar extension last year.
However, a source said, “It was not a vote of long-term confidence. If ABC believed Jimmy was still necessary, they would have locked him up for years. Instead, they bought themselves time.”
He added, “Ratings are soft, the advertising market is weak, the affiliates were angry last year, and Jimmy keeps handing out new weapons to the network.”
Another source said, “He used to be a smart risk. Now he feels like an expensive problem.”
