Gov. Newsom to appear on Colbert, not Kimmel, after speculation

Gov. Gavin Newsom is set to appear on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”—not “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”—on Tuesday evening, according to an Instagram Story posted by “The Late Show.”

While it’s unclear what Newsom will discuss, his appearance follows the Walt Disney Co.’s announcement that “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will return to air after a brief suspension.

After the announcement, multiple reports suggested Newsom would be one of Kimmel’s guests. Instead, ABC confirmed that actor Glen Powell and singer Sarah McLachlan will appear on Kimmel’s return episode.

McLachlan was a vocal supporter of Kimmel during his suspension, even canceling a planned performance at ABC News’ “Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery” premiere in Los Angeles on Sunday in protest.

ABC suspended Kimmel last week following a controversial comment he made during his Monday monologue about the political reaction to Charlie Kirk’s shooting:

“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, and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

Before the suspension was lifted, celebrities, politicians, and members of the public from across the political spectrum spoke out against ABC’s decision.

Thousands of social media users pledged to cancel their Disney+ subscriptions, and on Thursday, demonstrators gathered outside Kimmel’s Hollywood studio and the Walt Disney Studio Lot in Burbank to protest the suspension.

Despite the suspension being lifted, two major broadcasters—Nexstar and Sinclair—have announced that “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will still be preempted on their ABC affiliates.

Nexstar Media Group is the parent company of KTLA.

“We made a decision last week to preempt ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ following what ABC referred to as Mr. Kimmel’s ‘ill-timed and insensitive’ comments at a critical time in our national discourse,” Nexstar said in a statement Tuesday morning. “We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve.”

Newsom was among the first public officials to condemn the attack on Kirk, calling it “sick and reprehensible.” Kirk was the inaugural guest on Newsom’s podcast, “This Is Gavin Newsom,” where the two discussed political polarization and youth engagement.