Jimmy Kimmel Breaks Down in Emotional Message to Viewers
“I’m crying already, I’m sorry,” Kimmel said during his last monologue of the year.
Jimmy Kimmel ended his final show of 2025 with an emotional thank-you to his viewers for sticking with him through a year filled with tragedy.
“This has been a strange year. It’s been a hard year,” Kimmel said. “We’ve had some lows, we’ve had some highs. For me, maybe more than any year of my life.”
“I’m crying already, I’m sorry,” Kimmel said.
“I just want to say that we appreciate your support, your enthusiasm, and not just for watching. This year, you literally pulled us out of a hole, and we cannot thank you enough personally,” Kimmel said.
The “hole” Kimmel referred to was ABC’s temporary preempting of his show in September 2025. His cancellation was the apparent result of Donald Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Brendan Carr threatening to revoke ABC’s license over Kimmel’s material.
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Kimmel triumphantly returned to the air the following week, thanks in part to a massive wave of outrage from his viewers against ABC. Still, his emotional monologue made clear he was upset by what happened.
Disney temporarily suspended Kimmel's show for remarks he made regarding Charlie Kirk’s assassination, prompting protests.
David Swanson/REUTERS
January 2025 also saw Kimmel tearfully commenting on the devastating wildfires that ravaged the Los Angeles area.
In November, a heartbroken Kimmel delivered an emotional tribute to his best friend Cleto Escobedo III. Cleto, who had also been the show’s band leader since its premiere, died from liver transplant complications earlier that day.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! Childhood photo of Cleto and Jimmy
ABC
Kimmel continued thanking his fans in his Thursday monologue. He explained that part of what made the year so difficult was the “many awful and destructive acts” happening throughout the United States.
“When I hear from people who tell me that they watch our show, and the shows that my friends and colleagues do on the other channels, and that it makes them feel less crazy, it makes me feel less crazy too,” Kimmel said.
He added, “I also believe it is important that we as Americans let our friends in other countries... know that a lot of us are not OK with what is happening.“
Kimmel told his international viewers, “There is still much more good in this country than bad, and we hope that you will bear with us during this extended psychotic episode that we’re in the middle of.”
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