Several prominent figures from Hollywood and the broader film industry—including She-Hulk star Tatiana Maslany, Pedro Pascal (who will portray Reed Richards in the upcoming Fantastic 4: First Steps), and Mark Ruffalo, who has played the Hulk for over a decade—have spoken out in response to the recent cancellation of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Kimmel, following comments made by the host regarding the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The show’s cancellation stems from Kimmel’s remarks during a broadcast in which he said:
“The MAGA gang (is) desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”
He also criticized former President Donald Trump’s response to Kirk’s death.
These remarks were labeled as “ill-timed and thus insensitive” by The Walt Disney Company in a statement issued this past Monday. The statement also emphasized that the suspension of the program is meant to prevent further political tensions during an “emotional moment for our country.”
The decision was reportedly heavily influenced by a statement from FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who called Kimmel’s remarks “truly sick” and directed strong words at Disney and ABC, warning: “We can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way.”
For his part, Donald Trump described ABC’s action as “great news for America,” and made a statement on his social network, Truth Social. He also took the opportunity to criticize fellow late-night hosts Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, calling them “two total losers” and suggesting their shows should be canceled next.
The cancellation has sparked widespread backlash. Lawmakers, legal experts, Hollywood stars, and fellow talk-show hosts have denounced the decision as a violation of free speech, triggering calls to boycott Disney and ABC under trending hashtags like #CancelDisney and #CancelABC.
Among the celebrities who joined this movement is Tatiana Maslany, who urged her Instagram followers to: “cancel your Disney+, Hulu, ESPN subscriptions!”—some of the platforms where She-Hulk, the show she stars in, is broadcast.
Furthermore, actor Mark Ruffalo, a member of the Marvel family since 2012, shared a report showing that Disney’s stock has dropped by seven percent since Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension. “It’s going to go down a lot further if they cancel his show,” declared Ruffalo. “Disney does not want to be the ones that broke America.”
Additionally, Pedro Pascal, Marvel’s new face with his role in Fantastic 4: First Steps, has also made statements on Instagram supporting Kimmel, encouraging his followers to “defend democracy” and “defend free speech.”
This not only represents a problem for the companies managing the show, such as Disney—facing estimated losses of over six billion dollars according to a study by Snopes—but also for the industry as a whole, raising serious questions about the future of freedom of expression in film.
As Ken Martin, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, stated:
“The state under Donald Trump has amassed a chilling record of restricting speech, extorting private companies, and dropping the full weight of the government censorship hammer on First Amendment rights.”
This incident marks a turning point for the entertainment industry and its response to coercive threats from the state against freedom of expression. It also reveals systemic negligence toward one of the United States’ most fundamental legal protections: the First Amendment.
As former president Barack Obama addressed on his X account.
