Jimmy Fallon kicked off his monologue Thursday night with a number of awkward jokes surrounding his fellow late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s TV exit.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! was pulled off air “indefinitely” on Wednesday after a Trump-appointed FCC chairman appeared to threaten ABC. Fallon was the last of the late-night hosts to cover the drama.
“The big story is that Jimmy Kimmel was suspended by ABC after pressure from the FCC, leaving everyone thinking WTF‚” Fallon said. The humor didn’t get any edgier from there.
“This morning I woke up to 100 text messages from my dad saying, ‘I’m sorry they canceled your show.’ I go, ‘That’s not me. That’s Jimmy Kimmel,’” Fallon joked further.
Fallon assured viewers with mock seriousness that he wouldn’t allow any government censorship to affect his show, before doing a bit where his jokes about Trump were dubbed over by a stiff voice singing the president’s praises.
The monologue seemed to resemble Jon Stewart’s from earlier in the evening over at Comedy Central, however, The Daily Show’s “state-approved” monologue had more bite to it, thanks to Stewart’s earned reputation for speaking his full, unfiltered mind.
Fallon’s approach to Kimmel’s suspension from ABC is standard for the late-night host, who has always shied away from taking hard political stances.
That doesn’t seem to be appreciated by Trump, however, as his Truth Social post on early Thursday implied.
After the president gloated about Kimmel’s show being suspended, he added, “That leaves Jimmy [Fallon] and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC.”
The president urged NBC to cancel Fallon and Meyers’ show, writing “Do it NBC!”
Trump’s attack on late-night host Seth Meyers is expected given Meyers’ clear disdain for the president, but Fallon has seemingly done little to earn Trump’s ire. He’s the host who famously tussled Trump’s hair in a playful 2016 interview.
Although Fallon didn’t respond to Trump’s social media threats, he did share some kind words towards Kimmel early in his monologue.
“I do know Jimmy Kimmel, and he’s a decent, funny, and loving guy,” Fallon said. “I hope he comes back.”
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