Actors who have worked for Disney are urging people to boycott the media and entertainment giant after its ABC network suspended comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show over remarks he made about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The internet was already lighting up with users sharing screenshots of canceled subscriptions to Disney-owned streaming services or canceled vacations at Disney properties.
Protestors have also appeared outside the corporate headquarters in Burbank, Calif., while angry Disney+ and Hulu users have flooded social media accounts and customer service pages.
Meanwhile, Hollywood celebrities have been expressing support for Kimmel and disappointment at Disney for suspending his show indefinitely amid pressure from the FCC.
But some stars have gone a step further by endorsing calls to boycott Disney, including actors featured in Marvel shows and movies.
Tatiana Maslany, who starred in the Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, posted a behind-the-scenes image from the show on Instagram with text overlaid that says “cancel your @disneyplus @hulu @espn subscriptions!”
In addition, Marisa Tomei, who played Aunt May in Spider-Man movies distributed by Sony as well as Avengers movies from Disney, reposted a call to “unsubscribe and boycott” Disney platforms.
That follows other talent threatening to turn away from Disney. Writer and producer Damon Lindelof, whose show Lost ran on ABC, expressed his solidarity with Kimmel and said he hopes the suspension of his show is lifted soon.
“If it isn’t, I can’t in good conscience work for the company that imposed it,” he added.
Disney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Boycotts of Disney streaming platforms and theme parks could create major financial repercussions, especially as those businesses have helped prop up earnings at the conglomerate recently.
The company’s latest quarterly report showed that Disney+ hit 128 million subscribers, up 1.8 million from the prior quarter, with Disney+ and Hulu combining for 183 million subscribers.
That helped the streaming business grow its profit, climbing further out of a year-ago loss and offsetting weaker results in film and TV.
Meanwhile, the parks and experiences division, which includes the cruise line, saw revenue and operating income jump on increased spending from customers and more hotel stays.
During his show, Kimmel criticized what he called the “MAGA gang” for “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.”
Afterward but before ABC pulled the show, FCC Chair Brendan Carr called Kimmel’s comments “truly sick” and hinted at regulatory action against the network and Disney, warning “we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way.”
Nexstar Media Group, which owns 32 ABC affiliate stations and is pursuing a $6.2 billion merger with Tegna requiring FCC approval, announced it would preempt the show “for the foreseeable future.”
Sinclair Broadcasting, the nation’s largest ABC affiliate group, also removed the show and demanded Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and make a “substantial personal donation” to them and Turning Point USA.
After Kimmel’s suspension, Carr later told CNBC that “we’re not done yet.”
While Carr has drawn broad support from Republicans, including President Donald Trump, some conservatives have expressed alarm at the prospect of regulatory infringement on free speech.
“I hate what Jimmy Kimmel said. I am thrilled that he was fired,” Sen. Ted Cruz said Friday on his podcast. “But let me tell you, if the government gets in the business of saying, ‘We don’t like what you, the media, have said, we’re going to ban you from the airwaves if you don’t say what we like’—that will end up bad for conservatives.”
Cruz, who is the chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the FCC, called Carr’s remarks “dangerous as hell,” warning against a future where the government can influence what broadcast networks put out.
“I think it is unbelievably dangerous for government to put itself in the position of saying, ‘We’re going to decide what speech we like and what we don’t, and we’re going to threaten to take you off air if we don’t like what you’re saying,’” Cruz added. “And it might feel good right now to threaten Jimmy Kimmel, but when it is used to silence every conservative in America, we will regret it.”
