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ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! on September 17 after Nexstar, the largest television-station owner in the country, promised to pull it over Kimmel’s comments on Charlie Kirk’s death. In response, some people are now pulling their support for ABC and parent company Disney. The WGA, SAG-AFTRA, and celebrities across Hollywood have all spoken up in support of Kimmel, and in-person protests are happening on both coasts. Meanwhile, some creatives with ties to Disney are speaking out: Lost creator Damon Lindelof announced on September 18 that he will not work for Disney until Jimmy Kimmel Live! returns, while She-Hulk star Tatiana Maslany has endorsed a boycott of Disney+ and Hulk Mark Ruffalo points out the economic impact. Stars from other studios, like Cynthia Nixon, Noah Centineo, and more, are showing their support as well by cancelling their subs.
Hundreds of WGA and SAG-AFTRA members picketed outside Disney’s headquarters in Burbank on September 18, displaying signs with messages including “ABC Bends the Knee to Fascism” and “This is literally what your show Andor is about!” On the same day, picketers also gathered outside of El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, where Kimmel tapes his show. “Here Comes Hitler: A New Comedy From ABC,” one sign read. Several other signs encouraged people to cancel their subscriptions to Disney+ and Hulu.
About 100 people also gathered in front of ABC’s New York headquarters where the crowd chanted “Kimmel stays, Trump must go” and “ABC, grow a spine,” per Variety. Assemblymember Alex Bores said in a speech that it is “un-American” for the government to take someone off the air “because of political speech.” And there are plans for more picketing: The Writers Guild of America East announced that it will protest outside the entrance to ABC’s offices in Manhattan on Friday to “demand ABC bring back Jimmy Kimmel Live! and to fight to protect free speech.”
The Hulk actor quoted a post about how Disney’s stock is reportedly down 7% and points out how much worse it can get financially. He writes, “It’s going to go down a lot further if they cancel his show. Disney does not want to be the ones that broke America.”
Nixon shared a video of herself canceling her Hulu and Disney+ subscription in solidarity with Kimmel. She explained how she let the streamers know the reasoning behind her decision. The HBO star said, “They asked me why and I hit other and I wrote, ‘Because I believe in the First Amendment, reinstate Jimmy Kimmel now.’” She then named Abbott Elementary and Only Murders in the Building as shows her family would miss but they would miss the First Amendment more.
While it looks like Centineo might’ve bought a Disney+ subscription just to cancel it, he’s standing in solidarity with the boycott. How else is The Fosters star supposed to participate if he didn’t have a subscription to begin with?
The Supernatural actor posted that he will be canceling his Disney+ subscription “indefinitely,” following the same language as the original Kimmel suspension.
Maslany, who plays the titular role in Disney+’s She-Hulk, encouraged more than half a million followers to cancel their subscriptions to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN in a September 18 Instagram Story.
While calls to boycott Disney have spread, including from action group 50501, Lindelof is the first creative to publicly threaten to boycott working with the company entirely until Jimmy Kimmel Live! returns. “I was shocked, saddened and infuriated by yesterday’s suspension and look forward to it being lifted soon,” Lindelof wrote in a September 18 Instagram post. “If it isn’t, I can’t in good conscience work for the company that imposed it. If you’re about to fire up in my comments, just ask yourself if you know the difference between hate speech and a joke. I think you still do.”
The Watchmen creator also emphasized his friendship to Kimmel and faith in the host’s patriotism. “I met him for the first time backstage at the ABC upfronts in 2004,” Lindelof wrote. “He had just seen the Lost pilot and dug it. He also said, ‘I hope you guys know what you’re doing.’” He added that, “In the twenty years since, I’ve gotten to know Jimmy and if you know Jimmy, you know his incredible wife and head writer, Molly, who is not just his better half but his better three quarters. You also know he is caring and empathic and grateful. You know he loves his country.”
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