This week, Jimmy Kimmel is filming his late-night show in New York. On Tuesday, he gave his first post-suspension interview to Stephen Colbert. We’re covering that separately, but I wanted to mention yet again that almost all late-night hosts had Kimmel’s back, and CBS’s cancellation of The Late Show is still sending shock waves through the TV industry. Just as Kimmel’s suspension also sent shock waves. Meanwhile, Jimmy Fallon keeps bumbling along, both-sides’ing the situation until Trump’s Getstapo marches into 30 Rock, I guess. This week, Fallon spoke to CNBC about whether he’ll tackle any part of America’s descent into fascism. Fallon’s answer: nah.
Jimmy Fallon is “keeping his head down” during late-night TV’s battle with the Trump administration, the notoriously apolitical host said Tuesday, as he reiterated he wouldn’t be trading shots with the president no matter how many times he threatens to have his show axed.
“Our show’s never really been that political,” Fallon told CNBC Tuesday morning, when asked how he was thinking about his job in the wake of Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension after threats from Trump’s FCC Chairman. “We hit both sides equally and we try to make everybody laugh, and that’s really the way our show works.”
“Our monologues are the same we’ve been doing since Johnny Carson was doing The Tonight Show, so really I just keep my head down and make sure the jokes are funny,” Fallon, who was on CNBC to promote his new marketing competition show On Brand, said, as his late-night peers risk their careers to speak up against censorship. “We’re just trying to make the best show we possibly can and entertain everybody.”
[From The Daily Beast & Variety]
Jimmy Fallon is such a bootlicking Pick Me. It’s not like Trump has even singled Fallon out as the only “good” late night host – when Trump is ranting and threatening late-night hosts, he’s coming after ALL of them. Trump wants Colbert, Kimmel, Fallon and Seth Meyers off the air. Fallon thinks this “aw shucks, we stay out of politics y’all” thing is going to save him. NBC’s C-suite might like it, but everyone else HATES it. Honestly, I never even gave a sh-t about Jimmy Kimmel, but he rose to the occasion and locked in when it mattered, and I’ll always respect the hell out of him for that. Fallon would never and could never.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
