Comedian Kathy Griffin has stated she believes she has been effectively banned from NBC's "The Tonight Show" because she is "too inappropriate or controversial." Griffin, 65, made the claim in an Instagram video on Tuesday, noting that she has not appeared on the show since Jimmy Fallon took over as host in 2014.
Griffin's last appearance on "The Tonight Show" was in 2013, during Jay Leno's tenure. She said that while Fallon was always pleasant to her when he hosted "Late Night" from 2009 to 2014, she has questioned some of his booking decisions since assuming the helm of "The Tonight Show."
"I do think it was a bad call for him to have convicted rapist Conor McGregor on," Griffin said, referring to the former UFC champion's appearance on the show. "I think the Fallon folks made a mistake by having Conor McGregor on. I think it sends yet another message to women and marginalized folks everywhere that we’re not equal and you can do anything to us, and the perpetrators are still going to be out there being glorified."
She also referenced Fallon's 2016 interview with Donald Trump, which occurred months before Trump's presidential election. Griffin described the interview, including Fallon's interaction with Trump's hair, as something that "didn’t sit well with me."
"I didn’t like when Lorne Michaels had [Trump] host ‘Saturday Night Live,’" Griffin added. "I think it’s time we kind of make up our minds about who we’re going to cancel and who we’re not. Take it from the most canceled celebrity in history — look it up. As the kids say, do better."
Griffin captioned her Instagram post, "Fallon, what kind of message are we sending here?! AND can we PLEASE save canceling people for the ones who actually deserve it?"
Griffin herself faced significant backlash in 2017 after sharing a photograph of herself holding a replica of a bloodied, severed head resembling then-President Trump. At the time, Trump stated Griffin "should be ashamed of herself," and Griffin subsequently expressed that she believed her career was over, stating, "[Trump] broke me. He broke me."
However, in February, Griffin stated she stood by the image, telling WUSF, "I absolutely lean into it, because I was right, and I was ahead of my time."
In recent years, Griffin has largely maintained a lower profile. Her recent work includes the 2021 FX comedy documentary "Hysterical," a voice role in a 2023 episode of "Futurama," and her independently produced 2025 stand-up special, "My Life on the PTSD List," which addressed her lung cancer diagnosis and the aftermath of the 2017 Trump photo incident. In April, Griffin also disclosed a $10,000 donation to Rep. Eric Swalwell's unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in California.