Jimmy Kimmel’s Return to ABC Complicated by Sinclair Broadcast Preemption

Jimmy Kimmel’s Return to ABC Complicated by Sinclair’s Preemption

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In a surprising twist, Jimmy Kimmel is set to return to ABC on Tuesday night after a nearly week-long suspension, but viewers in a significant portion of the U.S. may miss out. The Sinclair Broadcast Group announced it will preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! across its ABC affiliate stations, opting instead to air local news programming.

“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming,” the company stated in a press release on Monday. “Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”

The Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, confirmed Kimmel’s return after a suspension that was initiated to address concerns over comments he made during a previous episode. “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,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger. “We felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. After thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”

Despite Kimmel’s return, the landscape of late-night television will look different for many fans. Sinclair, the largest owner of ABC stations with 38 affiliates nationwide—including WJLA, which serves the Washington D.C. metro area—has taken a firm stance against airing the show. This decision follows pushback from Sinclair and Nexstar, both of which had expressed concerns over Kimmel’s remarks regarding controversial political figure Charlie Kirk.

The situation has been further complicated by Nexstar’s pending $6 billion acquisition of Tegna, which would solidify its position as the largest owner of local TV stations in the U.S. Sinclair, too, has ambitions for mergers and acquisitions that would require Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval.

As discussions between ABC and Sinclair continue, viewers are left wondering how this conflict will shape the future of late-night programming. For now, Kimmel’s fans in Sinclair markets will have to wait for updates, while those in other regions can tune in to see how the comedian addresses the recent controversies.

Stay tuned for more developments as this story unfolds.