Jimmy Kimmel Live! was pre-recorded at El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood and is now broadcasting on ABC in the United States at 11:35 pm PST (1:35 pm AEST) today.
The host was treated to a standing ovation as he arrived on stage, before he launched into an emotional speech about Kirk and his suspension.
He praised Kirk’s widow Erica for publicly forgiving her husband’s alleged killer.
“Erica Kirk forgave the man who shot her husband. She forgave him. That is an example we should follow,” he said.
“A selfless act of grace, forgiveness from a grieving widow. It touched me deeply and I hope it touches many.”
As his attention turned to Donald Trump, Kimmel said the president’s attempt at censoring him had backfired.
“He tried his best to cancel me. Instead, he forced millions of people to watch the show,” he said.
“He might have to release the Epstein files to distract us from this now.”
Kimmel also poked fun at Trump’s latest headlines, a running theme in his monologues.
This time, it was about the president’s announcement linking Tylenol use during pregnancy to autism in children.
“Follow the advice of Donald Trump and you too can look like a glazed ham with deep-vein thrombosis,” he joked.
Kimmel’s monologue marked his first public comments since being pulled off-air last week.
The show was sidelined after comments the host made about Kirk’s death.
During his September 15 monologue, he remarked that the “MAGA gang” was ”desperately trying to portray this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them”.
