Jimmy Kimmel Ratings Crater, Drops 85% of Key Viewers Since Return to Late Night Disney TV

Wow, things aren’t looking good for *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* Honestly, since Kimmel came back, the ratings have just completely fallen. It’s not a ‘comeback’ at all – it’s more like a slump, and a pretty big one at that. It’s tough to watch, especially considering it’s on ABC and Disney.

After Jimmy Kimmel’s return to his late-night show following a highly publicized suspension, ABC presented it as a major success. Initially, this generated some interest and a short-term increase in viewers. However, ratings quickly plummeted, losing a staggering 85% of his core audience and falling back to levels that previously raised concerns about the show’s future.

The Numbers Don’t Lie

Fox News reports that *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* has seen a significant drop in viewers since its return. The show averaged 1.9 million total viewers on October 2nd, which is down 71% from the 6.3 million who watched his first episode back after a suspension. This represents an 85% loss within its key demographic.

The viewership drop was especially significant among adults aged 25-54, a key demographic for advertisers. Jimmy Kimmel’s show went from 1.7 million viewers in that group on its first night back to only 265,000 by Thursday – a decrease of 85%.

This isn’t just a slight drop in viewers—it’s a significant decline. While Jimmy Kimmel’s return initially grabbed attention due to the controversy surrounding his suspension, people quickly stopped watching. His current audience numbers are worryingly close to the low ratings that caused concern for the network before the suspension even happened.

Disney-owned ABC hasn’t released an official statement, but the numbers show a significant drop in viewership.

Late-night television has been losing viewers for a while now, but Jimmy Kimmel’s show has seen a particularly steep drop in ratings. While Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert have kept their numbers relatively stable, Kimmel’s ratings have fallen almost 50% between January and August 2025 – a more significant decline than any of his competitors.

Even with all the attention his return received, Jimmy Kimmel didn’t deliver a strong show. Despite weeks of media coverage surrounding his suspension, he failed to capitalize on the moment.

Audiences Moved On

Jimmy Kimmel is struggling because audiences don’t find him funny, impartial, or engaging anymore. What used to feel fresh and provocative in his political humor now seems stale and expected. He’s moved away from telling jokes and now spends more time lecturing, often focusing on dividing the country in half.

Jimmy Kimmel’s return to television involved a surprisingly emotional opening, where he cried before making critical comments about President Trump. While this approach may have resonated with people in the entertainment industry, many of his former viewers—who simply wanted to be entertained—didn’t appreciate the shift to political commentary.

It’s ironic that even after leaving office, Trump still captures a lot of public attention. Meanwhile, Jimmy Kimmel struggles to attract even 2 million viewers. It seems his attempts to joke about Trump didn’t resonate with the audience, and they may have seen the humor fall flat.

The Broader Decline of Late-Night TV

Late-night talk shows were once a major attraction for network television, with hosts like Jay Leno, David Letterman, and Jimmy Kimmel drawing huge audiences comparable to those watching shows during prime time. Now, the entire format is struggling to stay relevant.

When Jimmy Kimmel Live! debuted in 2003, it typically attracted 2.5 to 3 million viewers. Now, viewership has dropped significantly. Importantly, the number of viewers aged 18–49 – a crucial audience for advertisers – is now much smaller than it used to be.

The recent drop in ratings for Jimmy Kimmel’s show after his suspension is just another sign of a bigger problem with late-night television. It’s not just about one host; late-night has changed. It used to be a place for fresh, funny moments and shared experiences, but now it mostly repeats political opinions and celebrates itself. The humor feels forced, the audience seems to react how you’d expect, and the shows just don’t have the same spark anymore.

The Media Spin Machine

If you rely on typical entertainment news sources, you might have missed the real story. This week, publications like *USA Today* filled online searches with light, positive articles claiming Jimmy Kimmel made jokes about his show getting more viewers than Trump’s events. Rather than sharing the actual ratings numbers, most news outlets chose to focus on Kimmel’s comedic performance.

If you search for “Jimmy Kimmel ratings” online, you’ll notice a clear trend: many articles minimize the show’s falling viewership while heavily focusing on Kimmel’s political jokes. Fox News is an exception, often reporting the actual ratings numbers. It’s almost as if the media is deliberately ignoring the fact that ABC’s late-night show is losing viewers.

This isn’t a recent development. For years, major media outlets have tended to avoid negative stories about Disney and its properties. Whenever a Disney project underperforms – like the movie *The Marvels* or the *Star Wars: The Acolyte* series – the same thing happens: the narrative is reshaped to downplay the issues and the truth is obscured.

The Disney Problem

Protecting media content might actually be backfiring. ABC’s declining late-night viewership is just one example of a bigger problem for Disney. Over the past few years, the company seems to have lost touch with many of its viewers by focusing heavily on political storylines that don’t appeal to families and regular audiences.

As a film and TV fan, I’ve noticed Jimmy Kimmel feels very much like a product of the Disney system he’s a part of – he often seems to echo their perspective more than what everyday people are actually thinking. When people stop watching *Jimmy Kimmel Live!*, it’s not just about him personally, I think. It’s about rejecting a whole brand that just feels out of touch.

A “Comeback” in Name Only

Unfortunately, Jimmy Kimmel’s return to television hasn’t gone well. The low ratings clearly demonstrate this. Instead of a successful comeback, it’s revealed that his viewership isn’t as strong as previously thought.

Despite the positive media attention, the show’s ratings are what truly count, and they’re currently very low. If things don’t improve, it’s unlikely *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* will be able to successfully promote many future returns.

2025-10-07 18:58