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More than 400 leading figures from Hollywood and Broadway have signed an open letter defending Jimmy Kimmel after ABC indefinitely suspended his late-night program Jimmy Kimmel Live! The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which published the letter on September 22, described the suspension as "a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation."
Signatories include Jennifer Aniston, Tom Hanks, Ben Affleck, Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Selena Gomez, Pedro Pascal, Diego Luna, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Olivia Rodrigo, Jason Bateman, Mark Ruffalo, and Kerry Washington. Stars from across film, television, and music said they stood "in solidarity" with Kimmel and against what they view as threats to artistic expression.
"We the people must never accept government threats to our freedom of speech," the letter declares. "Efforts by leaders to pressure artists, journalists, and companies with retaliation for their speech strike at the heart of what it means to live in a free country." It adds: "Regardless of our political affiliation, or whether we engage in politics or not, we all love our country. We also share the belief that our voices should never be silenced by those in power – because if it happens to one of us, it happens to all of us."
The controversy began after Kimmel's September 15 monologue addressing the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The host remarked that the "MAGA gang [is] 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." His comments drew immediate criticism, particularly from Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, who called it "the sickest conduct possible" and threatened regulatory action against ABC.
Within days, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting—two of the nation's largest station owners—announced their ABC affiliates would stop airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! beginning September 17. Disney followed by suspending the program "indefinitely." Nexstar president Andrew Alford described Kimmel's remarks as "offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse," while Sinclair demanded a formal apology to the Kirk family and a donation to Turning Point USA.
The suspension has ignited a wider debate over whether political pressure is undermining press and artistic freedoms. The ACLU warned that "teachers, government employees, law firms, researchers, universities, students and so many more" are also facing threats to free expression. Executive director Anthony Romero compared the moment to the McCarthy era of the 1950s.
The letter concludes with a call to action: "This is the moment to defend free speech across our nation. We encourage all Americans to join us, along with the ACLU, in the fight to defend and preserve our constitutionally protected rights."