Disney+ and Hulu cancellation rates double after Kimmel comment | Jimmy Kimmel

Disney’s short-lived suspension of Jimmy Kimmel under pressure from the Trump administration may have had a lasting impact on the company’s subscription numbers.

According to data from Antenna, an analytics company that tracks subscription and viewing data for major streaming services, cancellation rates for Disney+ and Hulu doubled from August to September — from 4 and 5% to 8 and 10%, respectively. Disney+’s claimed cancellation rates have been between 3 and 4% all year, with Hulu at 4 and 5%.

The increase in cancellations coincides with Disney parent ABC’s September 17 decision to suspend Jimmy Kimmel Live! After the FCC put pressure on the broadcasters to crack down on its host, who accused Donald Trump’s political movement of exploiting the killing of Charlie Kirk for political gain in one of his monologues. Late-night talk show hosts, including Kimmel, have gone from “court jesters” to “court clergy who impose a very narrow political ideology,” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr told Fox News.

After widespread backlash and an ACLU-backed open letter signed by more than 400 Hollywood stars, Disney reversed course and allowed Kimmel to resume his show. “We made the decision last Wednesday to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country,” the company said at the time. “We made this decision because we felt some of the comments were poorly timed and therefore insensitive. We have spent the last few days having thoughtful conversations with Jamie, and after those conversations, we came to the decision to bring the show back on Tuesday.”

Kimmel’s “Back” monologue, in which the longtime host explained his remarks about Kirk’s murder and passionately defended free speech, became his most-watched monologue ever on YouTube, with more than 15 million views in 16 hours.

His return also set broadcast records, despite not being broadcast on dozens of ABC affiliate stations owned by Sinclair and Nexstar, which sought FCC approval for a $6.2 billion merger and continued to pre-empt the show. Within days, after discussions with Disney, the two companies compromised and allowed Jimmy Kimmel Live! back on the air, without Kimmel fulfilling demands to personally donate to Kirk’s right-wing activist organization Turning Point USA.

While it’s unclear how much the calls to boycott Disney affected the company’s bottom line, antenna data suggests that anger and calls on social media to cancel subscriptions in protest may have had some impact on the company. According to The Hollywood Reporter, which first reported the results, the double cancellation rate resulted in the loss of about 3 million subscribers.

In a previously announced decision, the company will stop reporting subscriber numbers in its upcoming earnings report.