Jimmy Kimmel returned to his late-night show Tuesday after a summer hiatus, addressing Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr and referencing a past suspension from his program. During the 4,000th episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," Kimmel stated, "We are still here," a sentiment that appeared to directly respond to Carr's earlier warnings about potential FCC actions.
![Jimmy Kimmel on the set of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"]( "Jimmy Kimmel on the set of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"")
Kimmel alluded to the FCC's regulatory power and Carr's previous comments, suggesting an attempt to prematurely end his show. "There are those who used the regulatory might of the FCC to unconstitutionally try to make sure we didn’t last this long. But we did it the hard way, Brendan. And we are still here," Kimmel said, appearing to reference Carr's past remarks about taking action against Kimmel's show.
In September 2025, Carr warned ABC and Disney that the FCC could act over comments Kimmel made following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Carr stated at the time that there was a "concerted effort to try to lie to the American people about the nature… of one of the most significant newsworthy public interest acts that we've seen in a long time in what appears to be an action by Jimmy Kimmel to play into that narrative that this was somehow a MAGA or a Republican-motivated person." He added, "Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or, you know, there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead."
Kimmel was briefly suspended last year following remarks he made about the man accused of assassinating Kirk. Former Disney CEO Bob Iger had defended the decision, stating that the company viewed the remarks as "in bad taste" and that Kimmel was asked to acknowledge it was an "ill-timed and probably inappropriate comment."
In September 2025, Kimmel appeared to suggest that Kirk’s suspected assassin, Tyler Robinson, was part of the "MAGA gang," stating, "We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it."
During Tuesday's episode, Kimmel also commented on former President Donald Trump, remarking that both he and Trump accomplished nothing over the summer. He criticized inflation, Trump's approval ratings, and the situation in Iran, adding, "At this point, Blockbuster Video has a better chance of reopening than the Strait of Hormuz."
