Michael Eisner, who served as Disney's CEO until 2005, has publicly criticised the company's decision to suspend Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show indefinitely. In a post on X, Eisner questioned the leadership at Disney, saying, 'Where has all the leadership gone?' He argued that the suspension, coming after threats from FCC Chair Brendan Carr, was an example of 'out-of-control intimidation.'
Eisner's comments implicitly target current CEO Bob Iger, whom he had previously supported during a proxy fight in 2024. The former CEO stated, 'If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the first amendment?'
ABC announced the indefinite suspension on Wednesday without providing a reason. The move followed two major station groups, Nexstar and Sinclair, dropping the show after Kimmel's comments about Charlie Kirk's killer on September 15. Earlier that day, FCC Chair Brendan Carr warned on a podcast that unless ABC acted, the network and its affiliates would face 'additional work for the FCC ahead.'
Eisner concluded his post by praising Kimmel, calling him 'very talented and funny.' He also noted that the suspension came immediately after Carr's 'aggressive yet hollow threatening' of Disney, suggesting a lack of backbone in corporate leadership.
