Jimmy Kimmel vs. Donald Trump: A Timeline of Their Most Explosive Clashes

Jimmy Kimmel’s joke about Melania Trump having a “glow like an expectant widow” ahead of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner did not sit well with President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump or fellow Republicans.

Trump responded by calling for the firing of “seriously unfunny Jimmy Kimmel, who incompetently presides over one of the lowest-rated shows on television,” in a post on X that was later shared by the official White House account. The controversy intensified in the days following the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting.

However, the backlash surrounding the latest joke is only the newest chapter in Kimmel’s long-running feud with Trump and his allies.

Jimmy Kimmel became emotional during the opening monologue of his late-night show as he reacted to the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, calling it a “terrible night,” according to The Independent.

During the segment, Kimmel criticized the election results, saying, “More than half of this country voted for the criminal who is planning to pardon himself for his crimes. I guess this election wasn’t rigged.”

At one point, Kimmel appeared to fight back tears as he added, “It was a terrible night for women, for children, for the hundreds of thousands of hard-working immigrants who make this country go, for healthcare, for our climate, for science, for journalism, for justice, for free speech…”

In September 2025, ABC and its parent company, The Walt Disney Company, temporarily suspended production of Jimmy Kimmel Live! following backlash from conservatives and mounting pressure from Trump administration officials over Kimmel’s remarks about Trump supporters’ reaction to the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

During the segment, Kimmel told viewers that “many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk” and claimed that “the MAGA gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.”

The suspension reignited debates over free speech and political commentary on television, with several celebrities defending Kimmel before he returned to the show five days later.

A week after his return, Kimmel appeared alongside fellow late-night host Stephen Colbert in a cross-show segment designed to mock Trump’s criticism of network television personalities.

“My fellow late-night host, Stephen Colbert, is here with us. It’s the show the FCC doesn’t want you to see,” Kimmel joked during his opening monologue.

“We’re doing something fun tonight. We’re doing something unprecedented tonight. I think it’s unprecedented. I did not bother to check. Tonight, Stephen is a guest on our show. I will simultaneously be a guest on his show. We thought it might be a fun way to drive the president nuts.”

The segment prompted Trump to lash out on Truth Social, where he referenced his previous legal dispute with ABC and wrote: “Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.”

While presenting the Academy Awards in 2026, Kimmel once again joked about the President and the First Lady.

Referring to Melania Trump’s documentary project, Kimmel quipped, “Oh man, is he gonna be mad his wife wasn’t nominated for this.”