Photo: Todd Owyoung/NBC
First on LateNighter: Jimmy Fallon is set to address Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension on The Tonight Show Thursday night.
According to attendees at this afternoon’s taping, the host opened the show with several jokes about ABC’s suspension of Kimmel before turning serious: “To be honest with you all, I don’t know what’s going on—no one does. But I do know Jimmy Kimmel, and he is a decent, funny, and loving guy. And I hope he comes back.”
He then went on to perform a bit with a setup about carrying on with his monologue “just like I normally would,” but with the punchlines of his jokes about Donald Trump replaced by an announcer to make them inoffensive.
Speaking off-air during an audience Q&A, Fallon said that he had texted with Kimmel last night, and that he loves both Kimmel and Colbert, adding, “We need to entertain, and we need people to be happy in this crazy world.”
With all eyes on late night and its hosts, Fallon was a no-show at a promotional event earlier today, with organizers saying he had cancelled “in light of recent events. Though Fallon is the least political of the current crop of late-night hosts, he has not escaped President Trump’s ire.
It was just last night that Trump urged NBC to cancel Fallon and Seth Meyers, calling them “two total losers.” Fallon did not respond directly to Trump’s comments during tonight’s taping.
All of the late-night shows are likely to address the Kimmel news on their shows tonight.
As we’ve reported, Jon Stewart is set to host a rare Thursday night edition of The Daily Show. We also hear that Seth Meyers also devoted a good chunk of his “A Closer Look” to free speech and Kimmel.
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