Hollywood reacts to 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' being suspended

The iconic talk show host decried Kimmel's suspension during an appearance Thursday at The Atlantic Festival 2025 in New York.

"This is misery," Letterman said, discussing the suspension at length with the interview host and editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg.

"We see where this is all going, correct? It's managed media. And it's no good. It's silly. It's ridiculous. And you can't go around firing somebody because you're fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian criminal administration in the Oval Office. That's just not how this works."

In his 30-year career as a talk show host, Letterman said he'd never felt pressure from the White House after poking fun at former presidents from Jimmy Carter through Barack Obama, the way current show hosts are being pressured by the Trump administration.

"And attacked these men mercilessly," Letterman said. "Beating up on these people, rightly or wrongly, accurately or perhaps inaccurately, in the name of comedy, not once were we squeezed by anyone from any governmental agency, let alone the dreaded FCC, Republican or Democrat. Never."

Letterman said he'd texted with Kimmel since the announcement came down, drawing laughs from the audience when he said that Kimmel was "up in bed, taking nourishment," and that the canceled host was "going to be fine."

While Letterman said he was not overly concerned about Kimmel's immediate well-being, he said the show's cancellation may have been "premeditated at some level," given that Trump had alluded to Kimmel's removal after the July announcement that Colbert's show would be taken off air next year.

On July 18, in a Truth Social post, Trump celebrated Colbert's cancellation, writing, "I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!"

"The institution of the president of the United States ought to be bigger than a guy doing a talk show," Letterman said. Adding that Kimmel's removal from late-night TV was "predicted by our president right after Stephen Colbert got walked off."

The screenwriter and producer posted his thoughts about Kimmel's cancellation on Instagram, saying in a Thursday post that he was "shocked, saddened, and infuriated" by the news, and said he would not work with Disney in the future if the suspension was not reversed.

Lindelof was an executive producer on "Lost," which was a smash hit on ABC from 2004 to 2010.

"I was shocked, saddened and infuriated by yesterday's suspension and look forward to it being lifted soon," Lindelof wrote. "If it isn't, I can't in good conscience work for the company that imposed it. If you're about to fire up in my comments, just ask yourself if you know the difference between hate speech and a joke. I think you still do. And Jimmy? You've ALWAYS known what you were doing. Love you and support you."

The actor and comedian Ben Stiller used just a few words to describe his feelings about the show's suspension.

Reposting an X post by The Wall Street Journal's journalist about the news, Stiller wrote, "This isn't right."

The "Zoolander" actor made the post on Wednesday evening.

The actor and comedian Wanda Sykes made a reel on Instagram to criticize the Trump administration.

In the reel, posted on Wednesday evening, she said she had a full face of makeup on because she was set to go on Kimmel's show.

"But as you have heard by now, the Jimmy Kimmel show has been pulled indefinitely, abruptly, because of complaints from the Trump administration," Sykes said.

She said Trump had ended freedom of speech within his first year of his term.

Sykes ended the reel saying, "Love you, Jimmy."

Paul Scheer, an actor, comedian, and podcaster, protested the show being pulled from ABC.

Near midnight on Thursday, Scheer posted on Threads about the show's suspension, musing on why ABC couldn't air the show on its cable affiliates like ESPN.

Alex Edelman, a comedian, actor, and writer, made a series of posts on X about Kimmel's show being taken off the air.

Edelman, who stars in "The Paper," first posted about it on Wednesday evening, saying, "This is the actual cancel culture everyone claims to hate so much."

He then criticized the government, accusing it of pressuring ABC to fire Kimmel.

Shortly after midnight, he posted, "The joke I would like to make about the Kimmel situation is one I, apparently, can only text to close friends."

The actor Jean Smart, known for her role in the comedy-drama "Hacks," posted about the suspension on Instagram.

"I am horrified at the cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live," she said. "What Jimmy said was FREE speech, not hate speech."

"People seem to only want to protect free speech when it suits THEIR agenda," Smart said. She added that she was sickened by Kirk's shooting.

The comedian and actor Kathy Griffin took to Instagram to urge fans and fellow entertainers to rally behind Kimmel.

"Please, take it from me, it's very important to have Jimmy Kimmel's back right now," she wrote.

Griffin called on people to "be vocal" and "be an ideological consumer," adding that "money is all their crowd cares about."

Griffin has long been a staunch critic of Trump, and during his first term, she attracted widespread condemnation after posing with a mask depicting his severed head.

The actor and activist Sophia Bush, best known for her role on "One Tree Hill," condemned the cancellation in a post on X.

She wrote, "The First Amendment doesn't exist in America anymore."

"Fascism is here and it's chilling," she added.

The supermodel and actor Christie Brinkley, best known for her decadeslong career in fashion and film, posted an Instagram story expressing her support for Kimmel.

She shared a photo of the late-night hosts John Oliver, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, and Jimmy Fallon, writing: "I Love these guys!

"The laughter they provide us is as important as the air we breathe!" she said. "And they are taking another one of them off the air tonight!"

Brinkley added: "We must protect their and our First Amendment rights!!!"

The comedian, actor, and former daytime talk show host Rosie O'Donnell shared a photo of Kimmel on Instagram alongside an expletive-filled caption in which she slammed the administration and corporate executives.

"This is unacceptable," she wrote, later adding, "America is no more."

Comedian, radio personality, and podcaster Adam Carolla spoke about Kimmel's suspension in an episode of his podcast that he posted on TikTok on Thursday.

"I don't like the government getting involved," he said in the TikTok.

"I've heard every side of the story, and in general, I just want people to speak, and the ratings will do the talking, and you can support them, or not support them," he said.

He said he knew Kimmel personally and said he was a very good and generous person.

Bill Simmons, a sportswriter and podcaster, talked about Kimmel in a Thursday episode of his "The Bill Simmons Podcast."

"We've been friends for 24 years, so you're probably not going to be shocked to find out that I am on Jimmy Kimmel's side with most stuff," Simmons said.

Simmons said the suspension was not a result of cancel culture, but rather censorship.

He said Disney should realize that it has to stand for something, and stand for the people who elevated the company.

"Once you start losing your faces, you just don't have a soul anymore," he said.