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ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" will return on Tuesday after a brief suspension, The Walt Disney Company has announced.
"Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country. It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday," a Disney spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
Kimmel's late-night show was pulled off the air last Wednesday after Kimmel's remarks about the alleged assassin of Charlie Kirk sparked outrage and a veiled threat from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Disney decided to suspend the show after two major affiliate owners pulled airings of Kimmel from their stations, and Kimmel reportedly had told executives he would not apologize for his comments.
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The situation caused outrage among liberals, while some conservatives argued Kimmel's comments that suggested the suspected killer was a MAGA member were outrageous and offensive.
Hundreds of protesters demonstrated outside Disney's location in Burbank, California, to demand that Disney put "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" back on the air last week. Protesters also gathered outside Kimmel's studio on Hollywood Boulevard on Thursday, where they were recorded chanting, "ABC bent the knee! No to the FCC!"
The saga began last Monday when Kimmel accused conservatives of reaching "new lows" in trying to pin a left-wing ideology on 22-year-old suspected Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson.
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"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," Kimmel said.
On Wednesday, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel's comments "some of the sickest conduct" and suggested there were potential "avenues" the FCC could pursue. Kimmel had reportedly planned to address the growing controversy in his monologue that evening, refusing to apologize, but Disney Entertainment co-Chair Dana Walden, a top Kimmel ally, believed his planned remarks "could make the situation worse," The Wall Street Journal reported.
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Walden and Disney CEO Bob Iger made the decision to bench Kimmel, sources told Fox News Digital.
Kirk was assassinated during a college event at Utah Valley University Sept. 10. The 31-year-old father of two was answering a question about transgender mass shooters when Robinson allegedly shot him in the neck, killing him. Robinson was romantically linked to a transgender partner, and text messages released by the FBI purport to show him confessing to the murder.
Kimmel has been one of the Trump administration's harshest critics in the late-night arena. His suspension led to a nationwide debate on free speech, and some observers wondered if he would ever return to ABC's airwaves.
Fox News Digital's David Rutz, Joseph A. Wulfsohn and David Spector contributed to this report.
This is a developing story, more to come.
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