Jimmy Kimmel has his escape plan ready.
The late-night host, who’s spent years lobbing monologues at Donald Trump, revealed that he’s now an Italian citizen — a tidy bit of timing, given that Trump is back in the White House for a second term.
Kimmel dropped the admission on Sarah Silverman’s podcast Friday as the two discussed how some Americans are eyeing foreign passports. “A lot of people I know are thinking about where they are going to get citizenship,” Silverman said. Kimmel didn’t miss a beat: “I did get Italian citizenship.”
Silverman seemed delighted. “You do? Oh, that’s amazing,” she said. Kimmel doubled down: “I do have that. And what’s going on is — as bad as you thought it was going to be — it’s so much worse. It’s just unbelievable. I feel like it’s even worse than he would like it to be.”
The White House didn’t comment, but the reveal is just the latest in a string of celebrity “exit strategies” since Trump’s return. Rosie O’Donnell and Ellen DeGeneres have already left the U.S., relocating to Ireland and England, respectively. Kimmel, who campaigned for Democrats in 2024, seems to be making sure he’s got a European address ready if life under Trump 2.0 proves too much.
This wasn’t Kimmel’s first time bragging about his Italian roots. Back in June, at an event celebrating Italy’s Republic Day in Los Angeles, he credited his newly minted citizenship to his grandmother Edith’s family from Candida in the province of Avellino. Italian news agency Ansa covered the remarks, noting Kimmel’s pride in his heritage.
Trump, for his part, has taken notice of the dwindling late-night lineup. After Stephen Colbert announced in July that his show would end in May 2026, Trump quipped that Kimmel would be “next” to get canceled.
The president may have meant it in the broadcast sense — but given Kimmel’s passport update, it sounds like the comedian might be prepared for a cancellation of a more geographic kind.
Whether Kimmel actually leaves the U.S. or just keeps the Italian paperwork as a conversation piece, the symbolism is clear: one of Trump’s loudest late-night critics is keeping the back door open, just in case.
