Jimmy Kimmel sees 64 percent drop in viewers after short-lived ratings spike post suspension

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' saw a 64 percent decline in viewers on Thursday, September 25, after a short-lived ratings spike following his return from suspension.

Disney briefly suspended ABC’s late-night show after Jimmy Kimmel's remarks about the alleged assassin of conservative icon Charlie Kirk sparked widespread backlash.

Meanwhile, after a change of decision from Disney, Kimmel returned on Tuesday, September 23, and his emotional return drew a massive audience, but viewers failed to stick around.

'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' averaged 2.3 million total viewers on September 25

'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' averaged 2.3 million total viewers on Thursday, a staggering 64 percent drop from the 6.5 million who tuned in for Tuesday’s much-hyped return.

Kimmel lost even more viewers in the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults aged 25-54, as Thursday’s episode hemorrhaged 73 percent of viewers in this critical category.

The late-night show pulled in 1.7 million viewers among the key demo for Tuesday’s return but plummeted to just 465,000 only 48 hours later. It also lost a significant portion of viewers in the younger demographic of adults aged 18-49, drawing 1.2 million on Tuesday but dropping 73 percent to just 334,000 on Thursday.

The controversy began earlier in September when Kimmel falsely suggested that Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspect in the Kirk shooting, was part of the "MAGA gang," despite reports confirming he held a left-wing ideology — a detail reaffirmed in the indictment.

Kimmel said during his monologue, "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."

The false suggestion that Robinson was a GOP supporter sparked outrage and scrutiny from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Disney decided to suspend the show after Nexstar and Sinclair pulled airings of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' from their stations. Reports indicate Kimmel told executives he would not apologize for his comments.

'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' has also experienced a steady decline in ratings over the past decade. The program averaged 2.4 million viewers in 2015 but has been trending downward ever since — 2.2 million in 2016 and 2017, 2.1 million in 2018, 1.9 million in 2019, and 1.8 million in 2020.

By 2021, the show managed only 1.5 million nightly viewers. In 2025, its average viewership of 1.6 million represented a 37 percent drop compared to 2015 totals, the year Disney decided to temporarily sideline Kimmel. 

Jimmy Kimmel’s staff revolt over his behavior following his comeback

Chaos erupted behind the scenes of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' as the host made his dramatic return to air, leaving staff on edge and unsure of what he might say next.

A source close to 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' told the Daily Mail that the team would feel deeply betrayed if Kimmel caved to pressure from network executives and failed to take a strong stance in his first on-air remarks.

"It's chaos. No one knows what Jimmy is going to say, but there are rumblings that if he apologizes, there will be a walkout," a source said just five hours before the show was set to tape. According to the insider, the team believes an apology would signal a complete reversal of what they had all agreed upon behind the scenes.

"If he grovels or falls on his sword, that’s actually a betrayal to all of us. It will feel like he doesn’t have our back. I know that could save us our jobs, but that’s not the point. We were all in agreement about the things he said, we all felt that they were appropriate, and if he walks them back, that would invalidate what we had all discussed," the source mentioned.

Even though the source acknowledged that protecting Kimmel’s career is important, they insisted it shouldn’t come at the cost of integrity. "And now the decision is being made over our heads, with none of our input. We don’t know what’s going to happen, and that feels s**t," the insider claimed.