Jimmy Kimmel is feeling victorious (and spicy)! The talk show host took home his second win in the Best Talk Show category at the Critics Choice Awards.
The host of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, 58, has had a rollercoaster of a 2025, after seeing the show briefly suspended in September following comments made about the murder of right-wing figure Charlie Kirk.
After a week-long absence, which earned him further ire from the Trump administration and a massive wave of support from his celebrity friends and other talk show hosts, Jimmy returned to the air waves after a battle over the airwaves with ABC broadcasting partners.
At the 31st Critics Choice Awards, which were held on January 4, 2026 in Santa Monica, Jimmy Kimmel Live! emerged the victor for only the second time, following a win in 2018, and the host used the opportunity to not only shout out his team, but also, unexpectedly, President Donald Trump.
© Getty ImagesHe first joked with the audience that he “really didn’t expect this,” before unfurling a hilariously long speech. He thanked the critics and the hosts of other talk shows who “did not care enough” to attend, save for Hot Ones host Sean Evans, who got a special shoutout (that was bleeped in the E! telecast).
Jimmy couldn’t resist, however, getting in a few digs at Trump, who has gone on to criticize him ever since it returned to the air, and lobbied potential threats at other talk shows hosts as well. “I want to thank our president, Donald Jennifer Trump, without whom we’d be going home empty-handed tonight,” he joked (for the uninitiated, it’s actually Donald John Trump).
“So thank you, Mr. President, for all the many ridiculous things you do each and every day. It’s been a banner couple of weeks, and we can’t wait to get back on the air tomorrow night to talk about them,” he promised.
He did manage to get in a more sincere show of gratitude to his colleagues, though, saying: “Thank you to all the writers and actors and producers and union members, many of you who are in this room, who supported us, who really stepped forward for us, and reminded us that we do not take free speech for granted in this city or this country.”
© Getty ImagesJimmy Kimmel Live! was renewed by ABC for another year, extended all the way until 2027, shortly before the end of 2025. While the show seems set to continue for a few more years at the very least, in a recent interview, Jimmy explained that he already has his sights set on how he wants it to end.
© Getty Images“I want to end it in a graceful way. I want to have a farewell party with our staff. I want to do all those things,” he shared on the We Can Do Hard Things podcast beside his wife and executive producer Molly McNearney, adding that he wanted to “say the things that I want to say to people.”
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