Jimmy Kimmel is staring down a professional breakup, and his friend Bill Simmons has some advice: embrace the creator economy.
Disney-owned ABC suspended Kimmel’s namesake late-night show indefinitely after the comedian’s comments on Charlie Kirk. While “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” isn’t officially canceled yet, Simmons thinks he should move on.
“Why does Jimmy need ABC anymore?” Simmons said on his podcast.
Simmons is no stranger to a high-profile breakup. In 2015, the popular podcast host and media personality had a contentious exit from ESPN, which is also owned by Disney. He rebounded strongly and sold his sports and culture site, The Ringer, to Spotify for close to $200 million in 2020.
Simmons said in the latest episode of his eponymous show, “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” that Kimmel could similarly strike out on his own.
“You can create your own platform now,” Simmons said. “You don’t need these big places that are going to get intimidated by whoever — the FCC, the president. You can get your content out in whatever way you want.”
Simmons said Joe Rogan and former late-night host Conan O’Brien are examples of celebrities who’ve found significant success by starting their own podcasts.
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Simmons called ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel, one of the network’s key personalities, a mistake.
“This isn’t cancel culture — this is censorship,” Simmons said, calling it “the lowest threshold ever for an overreaction.”
Simmons met Kimmel in 2001 and eventually spent 18 months working on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” While Simmons said he hadn’t yet talked to Kimmel, he said he could relate to what the veteran late-night host is going through.
“When your life and career blows up in one second and all these people are reaching out, it’s pretty overwhelming,” Simmons said.
Regardless of what happens with Kimmel and ABC, Simmons made clear that he’s betting on his friend.
“If you don’t think he’s going to figure out another way to do content in an awesome way, you just don’t know the dude,” Simmons said. “He’ll figure it out immediately, and he’s the most competitive person I know.”
