Jimmy Kimmel Hints at Stepping Down From His Talk Show, Marking the End of an Era

Jimmy Kimmel, host of the iconic longest-running talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, hints at retirement after choosing not to renew his contract.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Kimmel hinted at the show’s end, sharing that he has a couple of years left on his contract for Jimmy Kimmel Live! and “that seems like enough.”

“I think this is my final contract,” he told the publication. “I hate even to say it because everyone’s laughing at me now — each time I think that, and then it turns out not to be the case.”

“I still have a little more than two years left on my contract, which seems pretty good,” he shared. “That seems like enough.”

Kimmel, who has hosted the show for 21 years since 2003, shared that he looked forward to ordinary life after the show ended but is unsure what the future will hold. “It might not be anything that anyone other than me is aware of,” he said, listing some of his hobbies like cooking, drawing, and learning to make sculptures.

Kimmel was hosting the 96th Academy Awards ceremony on March 10 and shared his unique struggles, saying, “I was exhausted Wednesday night but needed to rework the scripts I had. There were many revisions I needed to make regarding the ideas related to the Academy Awards ceremony. All I could think was, ‘I can’t wait until this contract ends.'”

Showing exhaustion, he shared, “I tried not to be left alone. I like participating in other people’s projects. I don’t want to be the center of attention. And I don’t plan on doing stand-up comedy after ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’.”

While a living television legend, Kimmel faced accusations of racism when he compared the rising popularity of BTS to a “fever” during a period of racial discrimination against Asian Americans due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Kimmel told actress Ashley Park, who declared herself a fan of BTS, “BTS fever. Both are very dangerous. You’re lucky to be alive now,” causing controversy in Korea.