Jimmy Kimmel wasn’t kidding when he announced Wednesday night that he’d be referring to the Epstein files by a new name from now on: “The Trump-Epstein Files.”
He continued the bit on Thursday night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, using his new moniker five times in reference to the files, even going so far as to trademark the name.
The president—who has already rebranded the U.S. Institute of Peace and The Kennedy Center in his own honor—has been lobbying to get his name added to New York’s Penn Station and Washington’s Dulles Airport.
“I have another suggestion for something we can name after him,” Kimmel explained Wednesday night. “It’s big, and I think he’ll like it, because it’s something everyone’s talking about—something that he actually, unlike most everything else he wants named after him, deserves to be part of. And I believe, I propose that we should think about adding his name to the Epstein files.”
Since then, with each reference to the files, the ABC host has called them “The Trump-Epstein Files,” accompanied by an on-screen graphic.
On Thursday, the show added a trademark symbol to its graphic, with Kimmel remarking, “We’re getting that trademarked. You can spread it around. Feel free.”
Jimmy Kimmel, who proposed renaming the Epstein files "The Trump-Epstein Files" earlier this week, continues to use the new moniker with every mention on his show. (He joked Thursday night that he's getting the name trademarked.) pic.twitter.com/lgw0OiQt3H
— LateNighter (@latenightercom) February 13, 2026
Kimmel, of course, has long been one of Trump’s chief antagonists, making him a frequent target of the right and the president himself.
Thursday’s monologue saw Kimmel address the revelation that Trump’s Justice Department has been tracking the search histories of Rep. Pramila Jayapal and other lawmakers who have reviewed the Epstein files inside a secure DOJ reading room.
“They tracked her search history—in the private room at the DOJ where Congresspeople are legally permitted to look at the less-redacted files,” Kimmel said. “And it would seem that they tracked those congresspeople without their knowledge.”
He pointed out that we only know this because Attorney General Pam Bondi was photographed during her testimony to the House Intelligence Committee holding a document that compiled Jayapal’s searches, concluding, “It’s such a delicate balance between stupid and evil.”
Watch Kimmel’s complete Thursday night monologue below:
Colbert coined the term Trump-Epstein Files on February 2