Kimmel’s ABC Return Draws Over 6 Million Viewers, Network Says

ABC reported a decade-high audience for Kimmel’s return, as Trump hinted the White House may seek legal action.

Jimmy Kimmel hosts his late night show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in Los Angeles on Sept. 23, 2025. Randy Holmes/Disney via AP

ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel drew in over six million viewers for his first broadcast on Sept. 23 after his show was suspended over recent comments he made about conservative commentator Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

The network said 6.26 million people tuned in for Kimmel’s return as host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Tuesday evening after the show was suspended for six days due to a monologue Kimmel delivered about Kirk’s suspected killer that Disney, ABC’s parent company, called “ill-timed” and “insensitive.”