Dana Walden isn’t ready to say Jimmy Kimmel will still be hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live! a year from now—and on Thursday, she explained why.
Appearing at Bloomberg’s Screentime conference in Los Angeles, Disney’s president and chief creative officer was asked by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw whether Kimmel would still be hosting his ABC late-night show next year.
“Well, I’m certainly not gonna make that announcement with you here today,” Walden replied.
Shaw followed up more pointedly: Why isn’t renewing Kimmel a “no-brainer,” given that his ratings are up and he has emerged as a prominent voice in the debate over free speech?
“That’s a good question,” Walden said. “And the truth is, it’s a very challenging day part, late night.”
“That’s not to say that Jimmy is not doing a phenomenal job, and his ratings are up,” she continued, “but they’re up relative to a smaller audience that’s watching late night on broadcast television.”
Walden also pointed to the disconnect between the reach Kimmel generates online and the money that reach brings in.
“Obviously, there’s a YouTube channel. Millions of people are watching on demand parts of that show,” she said. “That is not a lucrative opportunity for a very premium talk show.”
Her comments offered Disney’s first public explanation of the business considerations hanging over Kimmel’s ongoing contract talks with ABC. Kimmel’s current deal runs through May 2027. Last month, Puck’s Matt Belloni reported that Kimmel had told Disney/ABC he wanted to return for another season and that both sides were saying they wanted to make a deal. But ABC was also seeking significant budget cuts, with one source estimating the target at roughly 20 percent.
That tracks with the broader economics Walden described Thursday. Despite Kimmel’s ratings gains and substantial digital audience, the traditional late-night business has been squeezed by a shrinking linear audience and declining advertising revenue. According to ad-tracking firm Guideline, spending on linear advertising across ABC, CBS, and NBC’s late-night programming fell from $439 million in 2018 to $221 million in 2024—a decline of nearly 50 percent.
Still, Walden made clear that the talks are about more than a spreadsheet.
“We’re trying to make sense of the business while also honoring a deep partnership,” she said. “I love Jimmy. We have a great friendship. He’s close to a number of the people at Disney.”
“And again,” Walden added, “we’re trying to work through it and make sense of both what does Jimmy want, what’s the right thing to do, and what’s the right thing for our business.”
As Howard Stern suggested earlier this week when he guested on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Disney is likely also weighing the potential backlash of letting Kimmel go. The host’s brief suspension last year triggered a swift response from viewers and industry figures, with many canceling Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions and others threatening to boycott Disney Parks.
I think that the reaction from talent (That Lin-Manuel Miranda guy that wrote the songs for Encanto signed a petition im support to Kimmel) matters more than cancelations to Disney+
I would definitely boycott Disney+, Hulu and Disney Parks if they let Jimmy Kimmel go!! Find a way through this!!
Me too.
Right. How did “Me Too” workout? it did NOT.
Quit while you’re behind! You don’t have the intellect for that!
Of course you will snowflake. Where shall I send a tissue and have YOU pay for postage?
How be we shove those tissues, box included, up your ass, humorless loser? You already are full of shit to begin with!
that sucks, D’has Disney fallen into the jaws of Trump now also?
The show is losing money
That’s why budget cuts exist; so the show doesn’t shut down~
how do u know…fox news tell u
*Everything* on network broadcast TV is losing money, I think that the debate will inevitably come to whether it’s make sense to use valuable spectrum for informecials or if it’s dangerous to rely on internet for disaster coordination, not if late night as it exists is a viable format.
Drop Kimmel n I am going to
I will never watch ABC again.
bye.
Or are you just being your obnoxious loser self, with no friends, again?
Oh no…. Seth and John aren’t gonna be protected for long by Kimmel and his Shield. And may the incoming backlash sequel result in a 2-YEAR contract, hopefully with not many intense budget cuts~
I wanna hear gud news about Kimmel’s renewal b4 the end of the year~🤞🥺🖤
Disney just kidding Donald Trumps ass. Cancel Jimmy and we cancel Disney!
IF JIMMY LEAVE TV, DISNEY AND DISNEY PRODUCTS ARE OUT OF MY HOUSEHOLD FOR SURE
Kimmel won’t stand a chance . Dave Ellison bought paramount and Disney is one that falls under Paramount along with Warner and CNN . Dave Ellison is a Trump Supporter and good friends.
Disney isn’t part of that.
Ellison has nothing to do with Disney, but rather Paramount, which runs CBS and Comedy Central.
And, yes, his deal to acquire Warner Bros. will close this TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6.
Once that happens, we all wonder if Colbert will quit his Lord of the Rings project (Warner Brothers IP) considering it will now be owned by the Ellisons
All because we have a clown in office, you will cancel Jimmy Kimmel. Let’s see how your ratings go if you do that.
no the only clowns are you liberal Democrats Jimmy Kimmel is a no account hack with zero talent and the only people that watch him are people like you and other liberal Democrat crazies if you don’t like Trump guess what take your happy ass over to Iran or down to Cuba we’ll see how long you last
another trump sycophant heard from
In one month from now, you’re gonna get your asses so thoroughly destroyed by a blue hurricane! Seems nobody likes your fucking stupid MAGA ideology, except for dangerously low IQ losers, like you!
All because we have a clown in office, you would cancel Jimmy Kimmel, someone I love watching. Let’s see how your ratings are if you do that.
I don’t care if they lose money. they have to keep him on. even if we all don’t stay up late to watch because we have to get up early for work the next day, we replay it later or we stream it. late night is a staple in our lives.
Apparently late-night is no longer a staple…did you even read the article?
“According to ad-tracking firm Guideline, spending on linear advertising across ABC, CBS, and NBC’s late-night programming fell from $439 million in 2018 to $221 million in 2024—a decline of nearly 50 percent.”
And probably even lower in 2026.
he’s just a liberal hack with no talent and why they keep him on the air is beyond me
It’s not his fault he attacks those treasonous scumhole cretins you for! You’d realize that if you wer’nt so fucking stupid!
she jas to check with trump first…COWARDS
They’re a business. If Kimmel’s show makes them $, it will stay. If not, it goes. That’s what shareholders expect. Whatever decision they make, I’m sure Disney has a fleet of people that will come up with a politically correct press release. I don’t have a horse in the race. I don’t watch any of them. They’re on way too late for me 😴.
Yes, did people even read the WSJ article about ABC’s plan for the end of 2026?
Disney is planning a restructuring of its TV operations.
• Expected to result in hundreds of layoffs
• The plan is to structure the business in a way that makes sense for streaming, not for linear brands
Kimmel!! I love that show!! After Colbert was cancelled I stopped watching CBS and watch reruns on YouTube. If Kimmel is gone I won’t watch ABC anymore. Which is sad to say. I had been thinking about Hulu. No way now. Why do people insist on getting rid of the best shows and keep the junk on forever! Puzzlement…
ABC Disney are making an obscene amount of money due to the heinous consolidations of major media.
Sniveling about expenses is expected, but don’t lose sight of the bigger picture!
Kimmel is beloved and is an essential counterpoint to the firehose of diarrhea coming from trump.
If they fuck with him again, they will lose so much business including ADVERTISERS WHO ARE FED UP WITH THE CORRUPTION IN DC.
Tread lightly execs. Trump is crashing and you don’t want to be perceived as caving to his corrupt dementia.
They aren’t. They still make money from ESPN, but even ESPN is a declining asset. The main issue here is that the business model of TV is collapsing, and late night has a poor record on streaming.
But even Netflix will have to eventually live with tighter margins, and everything on TV, including Fox News, is going to take a heavy punch. Including sports.
It is not rocket science to put ANY popular show in a different time slot! Duh! Advertising dollars would go up, IF that’s even the issue…
I would love to watch Kimmel on at 10 pm. Most of the network shows on then are cop cop cop or low IQ cowboy cosplay: drivel.
With Colbert gone, everyone taking the summer off and 5:30 am sunrises, I have shifted my diurnal clock a couple hours earlier.
Put Kimmel on earlier! Just do it now. Fallon would love it, that butt kisser.
Leave Jimmy on abc, he’s our only hope of free speech, plus he’s so funny! I love him. So does million of people. If he goes , not on his own , but because your threatened by orange man, then you. Have lost my business, and millions more. For good!
Leave Jimmy Kimmel alone! He’s awesome! Make things work!!!
This is such B.S. There are a LOT of YouTube channels for LOTS of shows. Just be honest: Disney has no desire to fight the current occupant of the Gold – er – the White House. Just admit you’re caring to Mango Unchained.