A timeline of Jimmy Kimmel’s long history upsetting Trump with his jokes

As Jimmy Kimmel’s recent comment about Melania Trump has come under fire from the first lady and the president himself, it’s not the first time the late-night host has ruffled Donald Trump’s feathers.

Trump has called for Kimmel to be fired following a joke he made about the first lady last week, where he said she had a “glow like an expectant widow” just days before a gunman attempted to storm the White House correspondents’ dinner.

November 2024

Jimmy Kimmel became visibly emotional during the opening monologue of his late-night show, characterizing the outcome of the US presidential election as a "terrible night."

The host made a sarcastic jab at the results, stating, "More than half of this country voted for the criminal who is planning to pardon himself for his crimes. I guess this election wasn’t rigged."

Struggling to hold back tears, Kimmel then listed his concerns, asserting, "It was a terrible night for women, for children, for the hundreds of thousands of hard-working immigrants who make this country go, for healthcare, for our climate, for science, for journalism, for justice, for free speech…"

September 2025

After the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, Kimmel told his audience that “many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk” and that “the MAGA gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.

Kirk was shot during an event on a Utah University campus on Sept. 10.

ABC promptly made the decision to take him off air, leading to Trump congratulating the network on Truth Social, saying that it had “the courage to do what had to be done.”

The suspension was quickly met with widespread criticism from the public, some of Hollywood’s biggest stars and political figures toward the US administration for infringing on their freedom of speech and free press, leading to Kimmel’s return five days later.

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Kimmel said upon his return that he never meant to make light of Kirk’s murder.

October 2025

Just over a week after the chat show host returned, he and fellow TV host Stephen Colbert appeared on one another’s shows, with Kimmel saying that they thought it would be a “fun way to drive the president nuts.”

In his opening monologue, he said: “My fellow late-night host, Stephen Colbert, is here with us. It’s the show the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) doesn’t want you to see. We’re doing something fun tonight. We’re doing something unprecedented tonight. I think it’s unprecedented. I did not bother to check. Tonight, Stephen is a guest on our show. I will simultaneously be a guest on his show. We thought it might be a fun way to drive the president nuts.”

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Trump made clear his displeasure before Kimmel’s appearance, complaining on Truth Social: “I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back. ABC told the White House that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his ‘talent’ was never there.

“Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who’s not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE. He is yet another arm of the DNC and, to the best of my knowledge, that would be a major Illegal Campaign Contribution.

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“I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative. A true bunch of losers! Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.”

March 2026

Kimmel appeared to make a dig at the president and his wife while presenting the Oscars.

At the time, Melania had recently released her own documentary, and Kimmel said, “Oh man, is he gonna be mad his wife wasn’t nominated for this.”

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