Donald Trump has sparked online criticism after making a joke about his marriage to Melania Trump, which many netizens feel were similar to the one made by Jimmy Kimmel.
Jimmy Kimmel Says He Helped Trump Marriage: ‘Closer Than Ever’
Jimmy Kimmel's remarks about Donald Trump and Melania Trump has landed him in hot water this week. But now, the late night host says that his jokes have had an unexpected outcome— bringing the couple closer together — even though his own relationship with the White House continues to deteriorate.
During his monologue on Wednesday, Kimmel told viewers that the first couple seemed "closer than ever" during their recent appearances. He added. "And I like to think I played a part in that."
Kimmel's joke kept going
Kimmel says Donald and Melania Trump seem closer.
And Kimmel brought the receipts. He played some footage from King Charles and Queen Camilla's state event where Melania and Trump were indeed holding hands for a little while.
“Watch their hands, if you will, as they enter with the King and Queen because the hands say so much,” he said. He then narrated the moment when Melania briefly let go of Trump’s hand before he took it again.
“Considering the week I've had with the first couple, I'm just gonna say that is a completely normal way to interact for two people who are very much in love,” Kimmel added. He then joked, “Maybe that's why his hands are all bruised from Melania swatting them away.”
The backlash from his joke had a ripple effect
Trump feels that ABC should fire Jimmy Kimmel
Kimmel was severely criticized after a joke he made at the First Lady's expense. He said, "Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow." The joke fell flat and Trump, Melania, and several others called him out, calling for his head.
Melania, in particular, wanted ABC to "take a stand" against what she called Kimmel's "hateful and violent rhetoric." Trump backed his wife's claim and publicly called on ABC and The Walt Disney Company to fire the host.
“When is ABC Fake News Network firing seriously unfunny Jimmy Kimmel,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “People are angry. It better be soon!”
Kimmel's joke and Melania's reaction were shortly after the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, and tensions were already high.
Kimmel pushes back
But Kimmel didn't take their remarks lying down. The host defended his earlier joke, arguing that it had been misunderstood.
“It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he's almost 80 and she's younger than I am,” he said. “It was not by any stretch a call to assassination.” He also pointed to the well-known fact that he is against gun violence, and that his comments weren't meant to be taken literally.
This is not the first time that Kimmel has been under fire for some of his remarks. In 2025, he was temporarily suspended from his own show for making some controversial comments about the murder of Charlie Kirk.
For now, he is leaning into the joke, and using the moment to create some humor. Because to Kimmel, he wasn't delivering an attack, he was making light of something that could have been real only days before.