Jimmy Kimmel’s show airs unplanned rerun, fueling questions about last-minute cancellation

Viewers tuning in to “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Thursday night were met with a surprise — a rerun instead of a new broadcast that was supposed to feature actor David Duchovny, “Stranger Things” star Joe Keery and pop singer Madison Beer.

The chanteuse confirmed on Instagram that her appearance had been postponed.

“Due to unforeseen circumstances, @jimmykimmellive needed to reschedule my performance that was originally scheduled to air tonight to a later date,” Beer wrote in a post around 7 p.m. ET Thursday.

3

Neither Duchovny nor Keery addressed the change.

News of the rerun of an Oct. 28 episode inside of a new installment of the show was reported by the Daily Beast.

The show’s official social media accounts made no mention of the schedule change. ABC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Entertainment site LateNighter reported the delay was related to “a personal matter,” though it did not have any details.

On Reddit, one user shared what appeared to be an email from the show’s audience office reading: “Tonight’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live has been postponed. Apologies for any inconvenience. We will contact you to reschedule for a future taping.”

Thursday’s sudden rerun was the first unscheduled switch-up for Kimmel’s show since he was suspended for several days in September. As of Friday morning, ABC had not announced when new episodes might resume.

3

ABC and parent company Disney have continued to weather fallout from earlier controversies surrounding the long-running late-night program.

Kimmel was briefly suspended after making outrageous remarks about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk that drew widespread backlash.

During a Sept. 15 monologue, the host suggested Kirk’s alleged killer was aligned with the “MAGA gang,” a statement he later described as “ill-timed or unclear.”

Disney pulled the show off the air for nearly a week before reinstating Kimmel, who used his return monologue to insist he never intended to “make light of the murder of a young man.”

While the network cited a desire to “avoid further inflaming a tense situation,” affiliates and advertisers responded sharply — with some refusing to air the program.

3

The incident triggered weeks of public tension between Disney executives and the show’s production team, and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has since struggled to regain its footing in ratings and advertising revenue.

Kimmel’s reinstatement came after direct talks with the CEO of ABC’s parent company, Disney, Bob Iger, and Disney Entertainment co-chair Dana Walden, though neither side disclosed any conditions of his return.

Former Disney boss Michael Eisner later accused the company of yielding to “out-of-control intimidation” by federal regulators over the controversy.