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Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show has been pulled off the air indefinitely following comments he made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's murder. After the announcement, President Donald Trump urged other networks to cast a wide net.
Trump took to Truth Social late Wednesday, Sept. 17, to deride Kimmel's ratings and throw some spare shots at Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon.
"Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible," Trump wrote. "That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!!"
But his words are far from the first case of tension between the president and late-night TV hosts, who've long used Trump as the punchline in their monologues and frequently criticized his policies. Here are some of the most memorable moments in his long-running beef with the hosts of late-night TV.
Stephen Colbert
CBS announced in July the network was terminating "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" after the 2025-2026 TV season, ostensibly because of finances, although Trump and conservatives celebrated.
"I absolutely love that Colbert got fired," Trump reacted to the news on Truth Social July 18. "His talent was even less than his ratings."
The president went on to say Kimmel was "next" and had "less talent," than Colbert, seemingly foreshadowing the comedian's ouster this month.
Jimmy Fallon
In 2016, Fallon spoke with Trump in a genial interview ahead of the election, in which he memorably ruffled the then presidential-candidate's hair. The sit-down received backlash, with many saying Fallon went too easy on Trump.
In 2018, Fallon told The Hollywood Reporter he regretted how it all went down, "I did not do it to 'normalize' him or to say I believe in his political beliefs or any of that stuff."
But Trump replied with a 1 a.m. social media post, calling out Fallon and attacking his masculinity.
"@jimmyfallon is now whimpering to all that he did the famous 'hair show' with me (where he seriously messed up my hair), & that he would have now done it differently because it is said to have 'humanized' me-he is taking heat. He called & said 'monster ratings.' Be a man Jimmy!"
Fallon, though, invited Trump-favored conservative comedian Greg Gutfeld to his interview chair in August. The interview was a rare intersection of the largely conservative voices at Fox and a late-night show that doesn't mince words on Trump.
Seth Meyers
NBC extended "Late Night with Seth Meyers" back in May 2024 in a contract through 2028. Meyers, 51, like other late-night hosts, is a frequent critic of the president and his administration.
Earlier this year, the president delivered an icy middle-of-the-night attack in January against Meyers, calling him "dumb and untalented" and attacking Comcast, which operates NBC.
"How bad is Seth Meyers on NBC, a 'network' run by a truly bad group of people - Remember, they also run MSDNC. I got stuck watching Marble Mouth Meyers the other night, the first time in months, and every time I watch this moron I feel an obligation to say how dumb and untalented he is, merely a slot filler for the Scum that runs Comcast."
The president continued: "These guys should be paying a lot of money for the right to give these 'in kind' contributions to the Radical Left Democrat Party. These are not shows or entertainment, they are simply political hits, 100% of the time, to me and the Republican Party. Comcast should pay a BIG price for this!"
Jon Stewart
"The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart has long exchanged heated remarks with the president. In one memorable moment, in 2013 Trump tweeted, "I promise you that I'm much smarter than Jonathan Leibowitz - I mean Jon Stewart @TheDailyShow. Who, by the way, is totally overrated."Stewart replied on his show, Trump's "real name" was "(expletive)face Von Clownstick."
John Oliver
Perhaps the late-night name Trump has traded the fewest barbs with is John Oliver. In 2015, the president and Oliver battled over a potential show appearance: The HBO host said he wasn't interested in having Trump on his show, which prompted the then-presidential candidate to blast Oliver.
"John Oliver had his people call to ask me to be on his very boring and low-rated show," Trump posted on X, formerly Twitter, about "Last Week Tonight." "I said ‘NO THANKS’ Waste of time & energy!"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump, comedians and his long-running beef with late night TV
Reporting by Nicole Fallert and Alan Nguyen, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
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