Jimmy Kimmel has revisited one of the most controversial moments of his career and said he never should have apologized for it. In an interview with Vulture published on Monday, June 1, the late-night host reflected on a 2013 “Kids’ Table” sketch that sparked outrage after a child suggested killing everyone in China as a way to deal with the national debt. Kimmel said he viewed the segment as a joke and argued that his apology at the time was unnecessary.
The sketch featured Kimmel asking a group of children whether the Chinese should be allowed to live after the shocking suggestion was made. Most of the children answered yes, but one child said no, leading to an awkward exchange before Kimmel ended the bit by comparing the group to a “Lord of the Flies” version of the recurring segment. He said he apologized largely “for the good of the Disney company,” and noted that the clip was removed from reruns, even though many viewers were stunned it had aired in the first place.
The backlash was immediate and intense. More than 75,000 people signed a White House petition calling for an investigation into the sketch. Critics accused the segment of echoing language associated with Nazi Germany’s persecution of Jews. Demonstrators also gathered outside Kimmel’s Hollywood studio, some carrying signs that depicted the host with a Hitler-style mustache.
At the time, Kimmel publicly said he was sorry if the joke upset people and admitted that ABC had made a mistake by airing it. He also said he felt bad that some viewers did not interpret the segment as satire. ABC issued its own apology, saying it would never intentionally broadcast anything meant to upset the Chinese community, the Asian community, people of Chinese descent, or any community more broadly.
Kimmel now says he is less willing to apologize simply to satisfy outside pressure. He told Vulture that after a separate suspension in September 2025 over controversial comments about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, he concluded that he could not continue hosting if he were going to be “micromanaged.” He said Disney advised him only to “respond and move on,” a strategy he suggested may be the safest route in today’s environment.
The host also acknowledged how unstable late-night television has become. In December 2025, he signed a one-year extension with Disney, shorter than the typical three-year deal he had received in the past. Kimmel said the shorter term made sense given the changing landscape, especially after CBS ended The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. He said the current climate has made the future of late-night programming far less predictable than it once was.
