Jimmy Kimmel has joined a string of celebrities who have obtained citizenship to other countries over growing fears concerning President Donald Trump’s leadership.
Comedians Rosie O’Donnell and Ellen DeGeneres were among those fleeing the US after the 79-year-old returned to the White House for a second term at the beginning of the year.
In a new interview, the Jimmy Kimmel Live presenter explained things are ‘so much worse’ in the country than people initially thought they would be, and revealed that he sought citizenship in Europe.
During an appearance on the Sarah Silverman Podcast, the host said: ‘A lot of people I know are thinking about where they can get citizenship.’
‘I did get Italian citizenship,’ he replied. ‘What’s going on [with Trump] is as bad as you thought it was going to be.’
‘It’s so much worse. It’s just unbelievable. I feel like it’s probably even worse than he would like it to be.’
Kimmel’s comments come after Trump suggested he could lose his job in a gloating post on social media, following the news that TV legend Stephen Colbert’s show was coming to an end.
‘I absolutely love that Colbert got fired,’ he posted on Truth Social last month. ‘His talent was even less than his ratings.
‘I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!’
In a press conference last week, he doubled down on the claims, warning: ‘Fallon has no talent. Kimmel has no talent. They’re next.
‘They’re going to be going. I hear they’re going to be going.’
Kimmel has been a staple of our screens for decades, having helmed his own late night show since 2003 – he also hosted the Oscars and Emmy Awards multiple times, and voices characters in the Paw Patrol movie and Boss Baby over the years.
Despite Trump’s recent comments, he insisted that he has no ill will to any supporters who may now be regretting their vote.
‘I think the door needs to stay open,’ he demanded. ‘If you want to change your mind, that’s so hard to do.
‘If you want to admit you were wrong, that’s so hard and so rare to do. You are welcome.’
A number of stars have decided to leave America following the recent election, after Trump beat Kamala Harris to return to power for a second time.
Ellen and her wife, Portia de Rossi, swapped the US for a quieter life in the Cotswolds while Rosie – who has had a long-running feud with the politician – headed to Ireland.
She was joined by her child, who is non-binary and goes by Clay, and shared that she needed to make the move for her family, and her ‘own sanity’.
Shedding light on the move while appearing on the Late Late Show, she said: ‘The President of the United States has it out for me and has for 20 years, when I told the truth about him on a program called The View – where it was my job to talk about pop culture, politics…
‘I mentioned his bankruptcies, I mentioned all of the sexual assault charges and I mentioned that he was not, in fact, the businessman that everyone thinks he is because of the show, The Apprentice, where they sold a bunch of lies to America for over 10 years, and half of America believed it.
‘He was very angry to say the least, and he hasn’t let it go. And he uses me as a punchline whenever he feels the need.’
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