In a promotional clip for the special, Disney CEO Bob Iger also pops in to declare, \u201cThey don\u2019t call it the happiest place on earth for no reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Iger is not in a happy place right now. The billionaire CEO has been slammed for his \u201ccowardice\u201d in \u201cbending the knee\u201d to the Trump administration, as former ESPN Radio host Dan Le Batard said on X<\/a>. Journalists and commentators Kara Swisher and Keith Olbermann flat out called Iger, who made the decision<\/a> to suspend \u201cJimmy Kimmel Live!,\u201d \u2018a whore\u201d and said he lacks \u201cscruples.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, hundreds of writers and actors staged a protest outside Disney\u2019s headquarters in Burbank Thursday, while people are taking to social media, especially under the #BoycottDisney hashtag, <\/a>to show screenshots of their canceled Disney subscriptions. Hundreds of \u201cI stand with Jimmy\u201d statements filled the comments section of just one Disney+ ad on Facebook that promoted its other streaming platforms, ESPN and Hulu.<\/p>\n The anger directed at Disney and ABC showed no signs of abating Friday morning, as Kimmel\u2019s suspension plunged America into a searing debate about the First Amendment and concerns that President Donald Trump is using the U.S. government to silence his critics. On his \u201cLate Show\u201d Thursday, Stephen Colbert called the Kimmel suspension<\/a> \u201cblatant censorship\u201d and said, \u201cWith an autocrat, you cannot give an inch.\u201d<\/p>\n It also looked like anger was starting to focus on all Disney properties, including its popular theme parks.<\/p>\n \u201cHeard from a friend at Disney+ that there are multiple levels of freakout internally, both from internal dissatisfaction, concerns about subscription cancelations, and of course the big one: concern about a boycott spilling over into parks and cruises,\u201d one person wrote on BlueSky.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cDisney\u2019s call to cancel Jimmy Kimmel made my choice easy: The family trip to Disneyland is now cancelled and we will go to Legoland in stead,\u201d another person wrote on X,<\/a> while yet another user posted a chart, showing various Disney properties.<\/p>\n The boycott call could also bring unwanted attention to Sunday night\u2019s Disneyland special on ABC\u2019s \u201c20\/20,\u201d with celebrities who participated facing potential backlash \u2014 even if they could reasonably say that their testimonials were taped weeks or months ago.<\/p>\n \u201cSupporting Disney after what they did to Jimmy Kimmel?\u201d one person wrote Thursday in the comments section of an \u201cexclusive\u201d People magazine news report<\/a> this week about the California-based Duke and Duchess of Sussex headlining the special.<\/p>\n The couple are known to attract plenty of online \u201chaters,\u201d who already are using their participation in this ABC Disneyland special as another reason criticize them. These critics have already begun to slam them for being on the show, mostly to accuse them of getting a \u201cfreebie\u201d family trip<\/a> to Disneyland that Meghan could publicize on social media. But on Reddit, other critics are noting their \u201catrocious timing\u201d<\/a> in promoting a company that\u2019s suddenly mired in controversy and boycotts.<\/p>\n Perhaps Harry\u2019s controversial 2021 comments, calling the First Amendment \u201cbonkers,\u201d<\/a> also could resurface, or people could say that the couple should speak out against Trump\u2019s apparent role in Kimmel\u2019s suspension, especially after Meghan made her dislike of the president well known before she married Harry.<\/p>\n The national debate over Kimmel\u2019s suspension began Monday night after the late-night host used his monologue to comment on the 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, arrested in the Sept. 10 assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. \u201cWe hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it.\u201d<\/p>\n Over the next day, right-wing anger grew<\/a> over the perception that Kimmel had falsely accused the MAGA movement of being responsible for Kirk\u2019s murder because the alleged shooter grew up in a Republican home, though charging documents show<\/a> Robinson\u2019s mother saying his politics had begun to \u201clean left\u201d and he had written of Kirk, \u201cI had enough of his hatred.\u201d As people debated Kimmel\u2019s intentions and whether he had just made \u201ca mistake,\u201d Elon Musk chimed in to call the late-night host\u2019s comments \u201cdisgusting,\u201d while other conservative pundits called him \u201cevil\u201d and said he should be fired.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, FCC chair Brendan Carr went on a far-right podcast to label Kimmel\u2019s comments as \u201ctruly sick.\u201d He also said that the U.S. government could take action against Disney and ABC because of Kimmel\u2019s remarks. \u201cThese companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there\u2019s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Two owners of local ABC affiliates, Nexstar and Sinclair, threatened to stop airing Kimmel\u2019s show, with Sinclair saying the comedian should apologize and \u201cmake a meaningful personal donation\u201d to Kirk\u2019s family and the activist\u2019s political group, Turning Point USA. Iger and Dana Walden, Disney\u2019s television chief, responded by suspending Kimmel, the New York Times reported.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, among others, called Iger\u2019s decision to suspend Kimmel part of \u201cthe systematic destruction of free speech,\u201d while a group organizing boycotts of Disney and ABC likewise slammed the media companies for surrendering to \u201cstate-sanctioned censorship.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Protest](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Disneyprotest1.jpg\")
Protest signs are displayed outside the El Capitan Theatre, home of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Calif., Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025. Messages included “Epstien Distraction,” “Boycott Disney,” and “Protect our First Amendment,” as demonstrators rallied a day after the show’s suspension. (Photo by David Pashaee \/ Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by DAVID PASHAEE\/Middle East Images\/AFP via Getty Images)\u00a0David Pashaee \u2014 Middle East Images via AFP<\/p>\n![\"LONDON,](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/HarryMeghanIger.jpeg\")
LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 14: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex (L) chats with Disney CEO Robert Iger as Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (2nd R) embraces Beyonce Knowles-Carter (R) as they attend the European Premiere of Disney’s “The Lion King” at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on July 14, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Niklas Halle’n-WPA Pool\/Getty Images)\u00a0<\/p>\n