By Mohamed Jack Quaid and his father, Dennis Quaid, appear to have differing viewpoints when it comes to Jimmy Kimmel’s scandal.
Before news broke that Jimmy Kimmel Live! was returning to the air on Tuesday, September 23, Jack, 33, expressed his support for the late night host on social media.
“❤️Sending my support to @jimmykimmellive,” Jack wrote via Instagram on Friday, September 19. “I’ve had the pleasure of appearing on the show 3 times and each time I was overwhelmed by the generosity and warmth not only from him, but his entire staff. Freedom of speech is fundamental to our democracy and we must do all we can to protect it. #freedomofspeech #jimmykimmel.”
Jack’s comment came just days before Dennis, 71, appeared on Piers Morgan Uncensored and was asked about Jimmy Kimmel Live! being taken off the air after Kimmel, 57, made controversial remarks about the murder of Charlie Kirk.
While Dennis said Kimmel “was always a very kind guy” on and off camera, he claimed the late night host’s comments may be worthy of some “consequences.”
“You have the right to free speech, and he certainly had the right to do that,” Dennis told Piers Morgan on Tuesday, September 23. “I would definitely give him that. But there are consequences that come with it, and you have to accept those if you’re going to speak freely like that.”
Dennis also accused Kimmel of depicting a wrong picture of Tyler Robinson, who has been arrested for allegedly killing Kirk during an event at Utah Valley University on September 10.
“Jimmy goes on and he lies, basically, or tries to put it out that this guy is right wing,” Dennis claimed.
During the September 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Kimmel reacted to the developments being made in the Kirk murder investigation.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them with everything they can to score political points from,” Kimmel said. “In between the finger pointing, there was grieving.”
He also questioned how close President Donald Trump was to Kirk given his behavior with members of the media.
“This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend,” Kimmel claimed after playing a clip of the commander in chief discussing White House ballroom construction instead of Kirk. “This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.”
Days after the episode aired, a spokesperson for ABC confirmed to Us Weekly that Kimmel was being taken off the air.
Nexstar Media, which owns multiple TV stations, told Variety in a statement that it “strongly” objected to “recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the killing of Charlie Kirk.”
The Walt Disney Company later announced on Monday, September 22, that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would resume taping on Tuesday.
After the news broke, both the Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar Media Group released statements revealing their affiliates would continue to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! despite the talk show’s return to the network.
