Jimmy Kimmel made a hopeful prediction about life and politics after President Trump’s term ends.
In honor of winning an honor in the entertainment category at the 86th annual Peabody Awards, Kimmel and his loyal sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez sat down for a conversation about Jimmy Kimmel Live!, its significance during the Trump administration, and freedom of speech.
In the video, Kimmel offered a positive theory about U.S. politics and the Trump era in particular.
“I think that it’s funny when I look back and think about the things I was worried about 10 years ago, 15 years ago, they seem silly now. And hopefully, if we’re not worrying about democracy itself, in 5 years I’ll be able to look back and go, ‘Oh yeah, we got it good right now,’” he said.
Kimmel won a Peabody after a brief suspension that rocked both Hollywood and the wider political landscape last year. The late-night host was pulled off the air by ABC because of comments he made about the deceased conservative activist Charlie Kirk, bending to immense pressure from MAGA.
Kimmel was restored to air, but the event became the catalyst for the TV veteran to double down on his denouncement of the president, his administration, and his goons’ relentless attacks on Trump’s critics.
“While ABC’s late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! has been on the air for 23 years, this season proved unprecedented in American television history as the show found itself ‘suspended’ indefinitely by the network due directly to pressure from the chairman of the FCC,” the Peabody Awards said in its statement honoring Kimmel.
“Kimmel’s return to air was a master class in public apology for the comments about Charlie Kirk that supposedly got him suspended while nevertheless, and doggedly, asserting his rights to criticize the president and MAGA movement that sought to silence him.”
The association awarded Kimmel in April, shortly after Trump, 80, once again called for the ABC host to be fired. At the Beverly Hills ceremony in May, Kimmel was handed the honor by A-lister Ben Affleck, who lauded the late-night host for refusing to “back down” after consistent attacks from the president.
“Comedy and satire are vital parts of democratic speech, whether the government likes them or not,” Affleck said.
As Kimmel took the stage, he began, “I called our president Fattyshack...and somehow we got a Peabody out of that. This country really has gone to s--t.”
“Making jokes about the president in America shouldn’t win you a prize. We have the right, guaranteed by the Constitution, to criticize and satirize our leaders,” he continued.
“You sent a message that we do care, and we stand up, and we will not stand by when comedy and journalism and dissent are censored and regulated and criminalized.”
The host took the summer off, with a rotation of celebrity guest stars, including Rosie O’Donnell and Jelly Roll, filling in. He will return to air on September 8.
