Jimmy Fallon says “Tonight’s Show” isn’t “that politics.”
Jimmy Fallon argues that “Tonight’s Show” is not political. This comes amid growing tension in the late-night talk show scene.
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Jimmy Fallon maintains his “head” in “The Tonight Show.”
The late-night host spoke with CNBC about his political role on the show after the drama surrounding Jimmy Kimmel’s controversial suspension at ABC.
“Our show wasn’t really political,” Fallon said of CNBC’s “square work on the street.” “We try to hit both sides equally and make everyone laugh. That’s how our show really works. Our monologue is the same as what we did because Johnny Carson was doing ‘The Tonight Show’. ”
The comedian said, “Really, bow your head and make sure the jokes are funny. There are great writers, smart, smart writers.
Fallon’s comments come after Kimmel was temporarily suspended after facing pressure from the Federal Communications Commission over what he made about the murder of Charlie Kirk. President Donald Trump responded to Kimmel’s suspension by urging NBC to fire Fallon and “Late Night” host Seth Myers.
“Kimmel has zero talent and if that’s possible, he has a worse rating than Colbert,” Trump wrote in a post on True Society on September 17th. “It leaves two total losers, Jimmy and Seth, on fake news NBC. Their ratings are scary too. That’s nbc!!!”
Trump had previously been targeting Fallon after CBS cancelled “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in July.
“The words, and that’s what it’s a strong word. Jimmy Kimmel’s neighbors go to a serious late-night sweepstakes and Fallon will go away shortly after,” Trump posted on July 22.
Fallon has been hosting “The Tonight Show” since 2014, and is generally considered to be the least politically unpolitical of the major late-night hosts.
In September 2016, he received backlash from an interview with Trump. He then playfully ruined the candidate’s hair in “The Tonight Show,” a Republican candidate in the presidential election. Critics on the left blamed Fallon and argued that he was helping Trump to show up and normalize, claiming that the interview was an overly advantageous for him. Fallon later told the New York Times that he was “devastated” by the backlash. “I didn’t do that to humanize him,” he said, “I was just having fun.”
But Fallon also doesn’t avoid teasing Trump on his show. In his monologue after winning the president’s 2024 election, he said, “America has decided to go back to a crazy old man.”
Fans shared Kimmel’s support after ABC hosts were temporarily suspended saying that Trump supporters were trying to characterize the suspect who murdered conservative activist Charlie Kirk as “something other than them.”
In a monologue on “Tonight’s Show” on September 18th, Fallon described Kimmel as “a decent, funny, loving man,” adding, “I hope he comes back.” The comedian continued to address concerns that his show would be censored and vowed to continue covering Trump “as I would normally do.” This replaced Fallon’s comments about Trump with narration, offering over-the-top praise to the president, setting a bit of a set to declare him “incredibly handsome.”
