How to watch 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!,' even if your ABC station isn't showing it
After a nearly week-long suspension, Jimmy Kimmel Live! is back on the air. But not for everyone.
While Jimmy Kimmel Live! network ABC and its parent company Disney decided to bring back the late night show, broadcast station owners Nexstar and Sinclair are preempting new episodes of the show with alternate broadcasts. Nexstar and Sinclair criticized Jimmy Kimmel's monologue remarks about far-right commentator Charlie Kirk's killer, for which Kimmel apologized in his first monologue following his suspension.
According to Reuters, Nexstar and Sinclair own over 25 percent of the nation's ABC affiliates. Impacted markets include Washington, D.C; Nashville, Tennessee; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle, Washington.
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Kimmel even joked about his continued preemption by Nexstar and Sinclair in his first monologue back. When discussing the overwhelming number of people who reached out to him during his suspension, he gave a special shout-out to "the guy who fired me from my first radio job in Seattle — where we are not airing tonight, by the way. Sorry, Seattle."
How can you watch Jimmy Kimmel Live?
If you are not in a media market with an ABC affiliate owned by Nexstar and Sinclair, you'll be able to watch Jimmy Kimmel Live! as it airs at 11:35 p.m. ET on weeknights. You can catch the show on broadcast TV, or on live TV streaming services like Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, Sling TV, DirecTV, and Fubo TV.
However, if you are in one of the media markets owned by Nexstar and Sinclair, you will be unable to watch Jimmy Kimmel Live! as it airs on broadcast TV. The same goes for live TV streaming services, as they require your location in order to provide you with local channels, meaning you'll end up with Nexstar and Sinclair's preempted local broadcasts.
You can try to circumvent these local restrictions by using a streaming VPN in order to change your location. While using a VPN in this way isn't illegal, it does violate streaming platforms' terms of service, meaning you might incur account restrictions or simply get an error message when you try to watch something.
Instead, your best bet for watching Jimmy Kimmel Live! is to stream the episode following its broadcast. Jimmy Kimmel Live! is streaming on both Disney+ and Hulu, with new episodes available the day after they air. However, if you'd prefer to watch Jimmy Kimmel Live! for free — especially since Disney+ and Hulu prices are increasing soon — the show's YouTube channel also regularly uploads segments from the show, including Kimmel's monologue and his interviews.
Topics Jimmy Kimmel Live How to Watch
Belen Edwards is an Entertainment Reporter at Mashable. She covers movies and TV with a focus on fantasy and science fiction, adaptations, animation, and more nerdy goodness. She is a member of the Critics Choice Association and the Television Critics Association, as well as a Tomatometer-approved critic.
