The tide might be turning for Jimmy Kimmel.
Just days after ABC hit pause on its longtime late-night host over inflammatory comments he made about MAGA supporters reacting to the shooting of far-right figure Charlie Kirk, the backlash against Disney is reaching a boiling point — and it’s forcing some serious second-guessing at the highest levels.
According to NBC News, top brass at Disney and ABC are now “feeling the pinch” from every direction — politically, culturally, and financially. What initially looked like a clean break is quickly becoming a high-stakes mess.
The company is now facing protests outside its studios, growing political heat from both Republicans and Democrats, and a snowballing online campaign that has led celebrities and everyday fans alike to cancel Disney+ en masse. One insider, who previously dismissed any chance of a Kimmel return, is now reportedly rethinking that stance.
And they’re not alone. Late Friday, the backlash reached a new level when former Disney CEO Michael Eisner took to social media to call out the company’s handling of the situation.
“Where has all the leadership gone?” Eisner wrote. “If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the first amendment?” He didn’t stop there — calling it “…yet another example of out-of-control intimidation.”
For a company already treading water in multiple culture war battles, Eisner’s words landed like a bomb.
Then came the data.
NBC reports that celebrities like Lance Bass and Amy Landecker have gone public with their Disney+ cancellations. Screenshots of their cancellation confirmations are spreading fast across X and Instagram, and Google Trends is lighting up with spikes in searches for “cancel Disney Plus” and “boycott Disney.”
And when culture and cash collide, execs tend to pay attention.
Even Bill Simmons, the influential sports and pop culture podcaster who had earlier expressed doubts about Kimmel ever returning to ABC, is now seeing the landscape shift.
“What changed over the last 24 plus hours is there was such a groundswell,” Simmons said. “This just felt like this became the moment. If we stand by and let something like this happen, what’s next? Where do we go?”
That question is now Disney’s to answer — and fast.
The network gambled that it could ride out the storm by putting distance between itself and Kimmel. But the storm is only getting louder — and now, instead of Kimmel being the problem, silencing him may be.
