Jennifer Aniston, Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks join 400 artists to back Jimmy Kimmel against ‘government threats’
CNN
By Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN
(CNN) — More than 400 celebrities are backing Jimmy Kimmel and speaking out against “government threats to our freedom of speech” in an open letter organized by the ACLU.
Jennifer Aniston, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Selena Gomez, Billy Crystal, Robert DeNiro, Jane Fonda, Rosie O’Donnell, Jason Bateman, Ben Stiller, Christine Baranski, Martin Short, Debra Messing, Jamie Lee Curtis, Olivia Rodrigo and Natalie Portman are among the hundreds of Hollywood names who have signed the ACLU’s letter after Kimmel’s late-night show was pulled off the air indefinitely by ABC.
Last week, Kimmel made comments on his late-night show about Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer, generating backlash from the right. Then, President Donald Trump’s appointee at the FCC, Brendan Carr, publicly threatened Disney/ABC to take action over Kimmel, prompting dozens of local station affiliates to announce they would stop airing Kimmel’s show.
Ever since Disney/ABC announced that “Jimmy Kimmel Live” would be “pre-empted indefinitely,” President Trump has reveled in Kimmel being pulled off the air.
“We the people must never accept government threats to our freedom of speech. Efforts by leaders to pressure artists, journalists, and companies with retaliation for their speech strike at the heart of what it means to live in a free country,” the ACLU letter reads.
“Last week, Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air after the government threatened a private company with retaliation, marking a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation,” the letter continues. “In an attempt to silence its critics, our government has resorted to threatening the livelihoods of journalists, talk show hosts, artists, creatives, and entertainers across the board. This runs counter to the values our nation was built upon, and our Constitution guarantees.”
The A-list letter addresses Kimmel being yanked off the air as a bipartisan issue that should concern all Americans.
“We know this moment is bigger than us and our industry,” the letter states. “Teachers, government employees, law firms, researchers, universities, students and so many more are also facing direct attacks on their freedom of expression.”
It continues, “Regardless of our political affiliation, or whether we engage in politics or not, we all love our country. We also share the belief that our voices should never be silenced by those in power – because if it happens to one of us, it happens to all of us.”
Many celebrity signatories include artists who are currently in business with Disney properties — however, the letter does not mention Disney or ABC, putting its sole focus on government threats.
The public figures who have signed the letter range from comedians like Chelsea Handler, Maya Rudolph and Ike Barinholtz; to political activists like Gloria Steinem and Jack Schlossberg; to filmmakers like Judd Apatow, Lena Dunham and Lin-Manuel Miranda; to actors including Annette Bening, Nathan Lane, Christine Baranski, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Kerry Washington, Laura Linney, Michael Keaton, Naomi Watts, Parker Posey, Pedro Pascal, Regina King, Tony Goldwyn and Noah Wyle.
Sources told CNN that Kimmel and his legal representative have been meeting with top executives from Disney, though no resolution has been reached regarding the future of Kimmel’s show.
The-CNN-Wire
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