Hollywood Week: Kimmel, Trump, FCC Again, Barry Diller, Saudi’s Clogs WBD Deal, Colbert Out

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Category: Haute This Issue

Published on Saturday, 02 May 2026 11:05

Written by Janet Walker

Late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, in light of the attempted assassination at the White House Correspondent dinner, is once again the focus of President's Trump wrath over his faux roast dead president joke.

Jimmy Kimmel Faces FCC 2.0

For the second time in eight months Jimmy Kimmel is facing a White House led attack, to have him removed from the airwaves, as the President has called for ABC to sack the late night talk show host for what it deems offensive and harmful rhetoric.

Hollywood Week: Jimmy Kimmel Suspended, Scapegoated by Nexstar, First Amendment Freedoms, Obama, Meyers, Colbert, O’Brien

"Kimmel's hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country," she wrote. "His monologue about my family isn't comedy—his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America. People like Kimmel shouldn't have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC's leadership enable Kimmel's atrocious behavior at the expense of our community," reported The Hollywood Reporter.

So, the now familiar Brendan Carr, chairman of the FCC, has been called in to once again act as the White House overseer of all things MAGA, and find a loophole or cause or something to have Kimmel removed. As the last effort did not and resulted in public outcry that resulted in picketing and protests, Carr is moving against Disney, the parent company of ABC for DEI violations. The investigation, which is the second, into the Burbank behemoth, is simmering and not expected to reach the front burner for some time.

By Monday morning, the White House seemed determined to blame Kimmel for actions that were clearly not of his making. Roasts of actors, political officials, and others happen frequently, and within the framework of the roast, there are often personal insults , digs, taunts, and stinging pot shots. The relationship Kimmel has with this Administration is one where any opportunity he has to agitate the White House's current occupants, he does it. And yes, it is all for ratings. Poor choices, bad decision, and ill-timed remarks seem to be a cornerstone of Kimmel's writing team. Is he calling for anarchy? For the disgruntled to rise up and create egregious injury, or resort to violence? No. No. No, he is not. However, one sees what one wants to see.

Kimmel summed up the situation releasing an image with the words "I Really Don't Care Do You?" Which Melania was known to wear during her first stint as First Lady. The attack on Kimmel has elevated this half-news cycle story into a week of headlines making one wonder are they enflaming the one and done joke to a national level for themselves or for Kimmel.

Hollywood Week: Bob Iger, Tim Cook, Meta Layoffs, WBD Vote, QVC, Michael Jackson

Hollywood Week: Netflix News, Reed Hastings, Stock Dip, Paramount-Skydance, Taylor Sheridan, Rust Lawsuit

Barry Diller Rebrands IAC

IAC Chairman Barry Diller announced this week upcoming staff reductions and the rebranding of the IAC changing the name to reflect flagship publication People and streamlining the business to focus on only two entities, digital publishing and the investment in MGM Grand hotels.

"The changes will mean staff reductions. In an SEC filing the company said that it expects to incur about $14 million in severance and related expenses, $48 million in non-cash stock-based compensation expense and as much as $1 million in other costs related to the plan. The company expects to see annual run rate savings of around $40 million when the integration is complete," reported The Hollywood Reporter.

The transition from a former holding company for various media entities to a streamlined unit with two distinct operations will result in the need to remove redundancies. Although Diller indicated they would make every effort to transition many employees to the now namesake publication. Under the banner of People, Diller also own Food & Wine, Travel & Leisure, Real Simple, The Daily Beast, and Ask Media Group.

The former Paramount Studio chief announced the changes in a memo to staff this week.

Hollywood Week: Jimmy Kimmel Returns, Disney’s Decision, Boycott Lifted, Stopping Free Agency

Paramount Skydance WBD Merger Shaky

The Paramount Skydance Warner Bros Discover deal has been all systems go and presenting a strong assurance the deal will receive the FCC seal of approval, until it was revealed that 49.5 percent of the ownership would be held by foreign investors.

The business tactics of the David Ellison led effort to secure the $81 BN needed to finalize the merger of Warner Bros. Discovery deal, are becoming increasingly shady. From the beginning of the sale, it has been clear that the entity with the most money wins. The WBD deal is valued at $111BN with assets and debt.

Ellison, the son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison has revealed three Middle Eastern nations, the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, Qatar Investment Fund and Abu Dhabi Sovereign Wealth Fund have invested nearly 50 percent of the monies, violating the FCC rules of Foreign Investment.

"Congressman Sam Liccardo is urging FCC chairman Brendan Carr to deny Paramount Skydance's petition that would allow three Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds and other foreign investors to acquire 49.5% of the equity of the company following its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery," reported Yahoo!Finance.

Ellison has explained that the foreign investment would be for non-voting shares, and that Red Bird Capital and the Ellison Family would be the owners of voting shares. It seems somewhat challenging to believe that the Middle Eastern nations would invest in a company where they are regulated to a non-voting status and unable to exercise any influence.

Hollywood Week: CBS/Bari Weiss, Broadway, LA Times Strike, Disney, Bad Bunny Backlash

Stephen Colbert Preparing Final Bow

Long time CBS late night talk show host Stephen Colbert, another frequent target of the president's fury and subsequently a casualty of the Paramount-Skydance merger and the immediate cost cutting measures needed, allegedly, to create a solvency.

"Of course, it was not Mr. Colbert's decision to end "The Late Show." CBS announced last summer that the network would cancel the show after this season, its 11th, for financial reasons; it was soon widely reported that "The Late Show" was losing tens of millions of dollars a year. Advertising revenue for all late-night shows has plummeted in recent years, and the number of shows has also fallen," The New York Times reported.

The fact that he was anti-Trump sealed the deal for the new owners, who have presented themselves with as the saviors of the MAGA world, positioning entities of the studio to project the values of the right, which Colbert did not.

The decision to axe the talk show, which was determined before the Paramount-Skydance deal was approved, but after the company paid the $16 million defamation settlement to Trump over the 60 Minutes piece, which to many, Colbert included, seemed more like a bribe so the president would give his blessing to the deal, and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr would sign off.

Colbert's vocal criticism of the payout sealed his fate or so it would see. Others have a more simpler, and less antagonistic summation of the reason, Colbert's show was hemorrhaging cash, it was not solvent. And of course, streaming, which will continue to transform the living room and late night viewing experience.

So as Colbert days wane, May 21st is his last night at the Ed Sullivan theater, here's hoping he spends the last of his time, ensuring that a voice of reason is not silenced, but instead delivers every point he has always wanted to but knew the next season depended on restraint.

Michael Jackson Biopic Continues to Beat It

Michael, the biopic, from Lionsgate and Director Antoine Fugua, has retained its number one spot at the box office heading into the second weekend and pitted against The Devil Wears Prada remake. Grossing $400 million worldwide to date, the biopic has already smashed world records for international theatrical biopic releases and domestically it is tracking ahead of the Austin Butler led Elvis biopic.  

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Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five award-winning screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," a non-fiction narrative, "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," and "Songs of Freedom: A Collection of Biblical Teachings," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.