Bill Maher came out swinging Friday night — and he wasn’t pulling punches. The Real Time host lit into Donald Trump, the FCC, and his former network ABC over the abrupt suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show following Kimmel’s remarks about Charlie Kirk’s killer.
In a fiery monologue that veered from savage to surreal, Maher called out the network’s hypocrisy, Trump’s bullying tactics, and the growing culture of fear in mainstream media. And he did it with the kind of sharp-tongued wit that made clear he’s not backing down — not now, not ever.
“I know why you’re happy tonight. I’m still on.”
Maher kicked things off with a grim acknowledgment of the climate for talk show hosts: “Oh, my God. Man, talk show hosts are going down like Blockbusters in the 90s.”
He zeroed in on the sudden ouster of Kimmel, who was pulled off the air “indefinitely” after Brendan Carr — a Trump-aligned FCC commissioner — publicly threatened to revoke ABC’s license.
“Well, I guess you all heard Jimmy Kimmel, my friend, my compatriot. He’s canned by ABC for comments he made about Charlie Kirk’s assassin. The day, right after the FCC guy came, head of the FCC, said he was going to revoke ABC’s license.”
Maher then made it crystal clear: he’s not scared.
“Let me just tell you something. I am not intimidated by the FCC. And if President Trump is watching, I have one thing to say to you. Have you lost weight? You look terrific.”
Maher didn’t just defend Kimmel, he brought it all full circle. Reminding the audience that he was once taken down by ABC over controversial remarks made after 9/11, he drew a parallel between then and now. Only this time, he says, it’s worse.
“It was 24 years to the day that I made comments on ABC that got me canceled from that network and Jimmy Kimmel took my slot… I got canceled before cancel even had a culture.”
And then he dropped the line that will probably haunt ABC executives for the rest of the weekend:
“ABC stands for Always Be Caving.”
Maher offered his full-throated support for Kimmel — and took a few parting jabs at the network’s corporate overlords while he was at it.
“Jimmy, pal, I am with you, I support you, and on the bright side, you don’t have to pretend anymore that you like Disneyland.”
From there, Maher shredded the larger political environment that allowed this to happen, mocking the right-wing weaponization of cancel culture — something he’s often been accused of downplaying in the past.
“This intimidation on the right is just so hypocritical. I mean everyone is scared now, and they’re all trying to kowtow. Good Morning America is now changing its name to Good Morning America, even the scum who didn’t vote for Trump.”
He didn’t stop there:
“Next year, the golden bachelor is Rudy Giuliani.”
And: “Wolf Blitzer is broadcasting live from the Capitulation Room.”
As for the FCC’s threats to go after The View, Maher didn’t hold back, mocking the show’s silence on the controversy.
“They got a new show lined up, it’s gonna be great. It’s called, Morning Wood with James Wood.”
But Maher, in true Maher fashion, turned the satire toward a blunt message for his colleagues in media — particularly the hosts of The View.
“They didn’t say anything about this this week, nothing. You know, because it’s never been their thing to weigh in on the issues… Girls, let me tell you. Go out strong, okay? It won’t kill you. I promise! It’s happened to me and I may go out after this show. We don’t know. We do not know.”
In one monologue, Maher managed to torch a former employer, mock Trump with a backhanded compliment, defend a friend, and call out an entire industry for spinelessness.
It wasn’t just a comedy bit. It was a line in the sand.
Watch the video below:
