Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner has railed against current leadership for the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel.
When even Michael Eisner — the man who transformed Disney into a modern entertainment powerhouse — is publicly slamming the company, it’s a sign of just how far Bob Iger’s empire has fallen. The former CEO, who helmed Disney from 1984 to 2005, took to social media to rip into the company’s leadership for suspending Jimmy Kimmel.
A screenshot of Jimmy Kimmel crying on TV after the election of Donald Trump – YouTube, Jimmy Kimmel Live
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His comments have set off a new wave of headlines, but they also expose just how messy the situation has become inside Disney.
Eisner Speaks Out
Michael Eisner fired his shots directly at current management after Jimmy Kimmel Live! was pulled from the air in the wake of Kimmel’s controversial remarks about the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Where has all the leadership gone? 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? The “suspending indefinitely” of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the…
— Michael Eisner (@Michael_Eisner) September 19, 2025
“Where has all the leadership gone?” Eisner asked in an X post. “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? The ‘suspending indefinitely’ of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the Chairman of the FCC’s aggressive yet hollow threatening of the Disney Company is yet another example of out-of-control intimidation. Maybe the Constitution should have said, ‘Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, except in one’s political or financial self-interest.’ By-the-way, for the record, this ex-CEO finds Jimmy Kimmel very talented and funny.”
Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner – Photo Credit: Ed Schipul, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
To Eisner, Disney’s suspension of Kimmel was an act of weakness — a company folding under intimidation from regulators and political forces. But he’s leaving out a glaring piece of this messy puzzle.
The Part Eisner Left Out
What Eisner didn’t mention is the reason Kimmel was pulled. This wasn’t about freedom of speech. It wasn’t about telling edgy jokes. Kimmel used his platform to spread misinformation — and many, including veteran journalist Megyn Kelly, believe it was willful disinformation.
In his monologue, Kimmel falsely claimed that the assassin of Charlie Kirk was aligned with supporters of President Trump. That statement was not only misleading but flatly contradicted by evidence. It wasn’t satire. It wasn’t opinion. It was false.
Kelly summed up the problem in plain terms: this wasn’t just a mistake. Kimmel himself has bragged about his team of fact checkers who ensure that they have all their ducks in a row. That’s why it appeared to many as a deliberate attempt to frame a political narrative.
And when you broadcast something like that to millions of viewers on a federally regulated network, it’s not simply “free speech.” It’s a liability.
The FCC and Affiliate Pressure
That liability came home fast. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr blasted Kimmel’s remarks and suggested Disney and ABC could come under scrutiny. Affiliates across the country panicked at the idea of regulatory headaches. Advertisers began reevaluating their commitments.
Jimmy Kimmel in a promo ad for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
Faced with pressure from regulators, affiliates, and sponsors, Disney’s leadership had two options: protect Kimmel’s late-night soapbox, or protect the business. They chose the latter.
Bob Iger and Dana Walden pulled the plug, suspending Jimmy Kimmel Live! “indefinitely.”
Disney Can’t Win
Disney ended up taking fire from both sides. Conservatives pointed to Kimmel’s reckless misinformation as proof of the network’s bias. Liberals and union allies rallied behind Kimmel, staging protests outside Disney’s Burbank headquarters and ABC’s New York studios. And now, Eisner has joined the fray, attacking Iger’s leadership from within the extended Disney family.
Bob Iger via CNBC Television YouTube
Instead of clarity, Disney projects confusion. Instead of strength, weakness.
Eisner vs. Iger
The subtext of Eisner’s comments couldn’t be clearer. The man who once ruled Disney like a fortress is openly questioning the mettle of current leadership. His words sting because they echo what investors, employees, and audiences are already thinking: Disney no longer looks steady at the top.
Michael Eisner and Bob Iger at Michael Eisner’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony – Youtube, Walk of Fame
Yet Eisner’s free-speech framing doesn’t match the facts. Kimmel isn’t being silenced for his politics — he’s being benched for misleading viewers in a way that triggered regulatory alarm bells. That’s a different matter entirely.
The Bigger Picture
The Michael Eisner Disney clash is about more than Jimmy Kimmel. It’s about a company that can’t seem to stop losing — losing trust, losing audience, and losing control of its own narrative.
For critics of Disney, this latest drama is further proof that the company has become a lightning rod for controversy, stumbling from one crisis to the next. For supporters of Kimmel, it appears to be political pressure silencing a comedian (despite that facts…). And for Eisner, it’s an opportunity to scold the successors who have failed to protect the brand he once commanded.
Michael Eisner being interviewed in Walt Disney World in front of the pink birthday cake castle – YouTube, Top Clips
But the cold reality remains: Jimmy Kimmel wasn’t punished for telling jokes. He wasn’t punished for expressing an opinion. He was punished for spreading misinformation that created a legal and regulatory nightmare for Disney.
Once again, the company finds itself in the worst of both worlds — defending the indefensible on one hand, and alienating its allies on the other. Eisner’s rebuke just adds salt to the wound, reminding the world that even Disney’s past leadership sees a company adrift.
How do you feel about Michael Eisner berating Disney leadership in defense of Jimmy Kimmel? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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