Did late-night talk show host and daily Trump basher Jimmy Kimmel just say he’s going to take it easy on the president? Well, kinda.
Kimmel recently spoke with Deadline Hollywood about the volume of Trump jokes that he will be using as the host of the upfronts roast of the Disney-owned net and television industry at the Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall in New York on Tuesday.
An upfront is an event held by television networks for advertisers in order to give them the opportunity to buy ad space “upfront,” months ahead of the next television season cycle.
Of course, the first question by the Deadline Hollywood interviewer was about President Trump. Kimmel was asked if he had been saving up jokes about Trump for the upfront.
Kimmel surprised with his answer:
Hopefully it’ll be the last upfront of the Trump era, too. So, I don’t know, I don’t know how much focus there will be on that. I think people have had an ass-full of Donald Trump, and I feel like the upfront is a time to look within and make fun of ourselves.
Making fun of themselves would be a nice change from the constant barrage of hate that Trump receives from late-night hosts. But, notice how Kimmel also said that it will “hopefully…be the last upfront of the Trump era.” If these upfronts are done yearly, then how would it be the last one of the Trump era? Does Kimmel know something the rest of us don’t? Probably not, but it’s definitely wishful thinking on Kimmel’s part.
Kimmel was then asked if the event would be a “Trump-free zone.”
“Well, I can’t imagine that it will be entirely Trump free,” Kimmel said, “but I’m not planning on that to be my focus.”
There was no talk of whether Kimmel would carry his “Trump-light” set over to his late-night show ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” so don’t expect Kimmel to take it easy on Trump during regular working hours.
The most likely reason for Kimmel taking it easy on Trump is for the advertisers. The advertisers are where Kimmel and Disney make their money, so doing a Trump-heavy set in front of them might alienate a portion of advertisers. It’s a smart move on Kimmel’s part, but it’s not without purpose.
H/T: The Blaze