Jimmy Kimmel addresses accusations of hypocrisy from Trump supporters over ‘Man Show’ humor

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel opened up about his career, personal life, and politics. And he did not hold back.

In addition to labeling Elon Musk as “a very bad person,” Tucker Carlson as “a complete phony,” and Donald Trump as “vindictive,” Kimmel also took an unflinching look at his own work on the 1999 to 2004 Comedy Central series The Man Show.

When asked about the Trump supporters who use clips from The Man Show to call the  Jimmy Kimmel Live! host a hypocrite, Kimmel frankly replied that “it’s fair game.”

“I think it’s kind of funny, because the very people who are using those videos as an example of why I’m a horrible person were probably the biggest fans of the show at that time. We did the show a little tongue-in-cheek,” Kimmel said.

He added that these people were completely missing the point of his and co-host Adam Carolla‘s jokes, telling Rolling Stone, “But you can pull things out of context and then they are taken literally. And that’s just how it goes.”

Kimmel went on to say that while he’s much more conscientious about the kinds of jokes he makes now, he also doesn’t limit what he laughs at.

“I think a lot of the outrage is completely manufactured,” he said before labeling the liberals whose fierce attacks on comedians as “a big part of the reason why Trump is the president right now.”

He then rejected cancel culture, asserting, “There’s no black and white when it comes to comedy. There is no line. The line is different for every person.”

Kimmel also doesn’t draw the line at laughing at himself as he reflects on his emotional nature. In addition to getting choked up talking about Trump’s re-election in a Live! opening monologue, the comedian divulged that he even cried on the last episode of The Man Show. Although he commented that the latter instance was “kind of funny,” he also admitted that he finds it “embarrassing” that he can’t keep his emotions inside: “If I could turn it off, I would.”

Whether it’s his ability to reflect on peoples’ realities, his sharp and relentless jokes about Trump, or his own candidness about himself and his work, Kimmel has undoubtedly established himself as a staple of late-night television over the years. Even so, Kimmel was honest that over the last few years, retirement has been on his mind. He said, “The reality is I’m not going to do this forever. At a certain point, it is going to have to end.”