Jimmy Kimmel suggested that he’s ready to walk away from his late-night hosting duties after twenty years at the helm of his ABC talk show.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times published on Wednesday, the 56-year-old host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” said that his current contract might be his last.
“I think this is my final contract,” Kimmel told the outlet. “I hate to even say it, because everyone’s laughing at me now — each time I think that, and then it turns out to be not the case. I still have a little more than two years left on my contract and that seems pretty good. That seems like enough.”
Kimmel is currently getting ready to host the Academy Awards on March 10. It will be the fourth time he’s been in charge of hosting duties at the annual awards ceremony after hosting in 2017, 2018, and 2023, as previously reported.
Jimmy Kimmel Hints At Late Night Show Exit: “I Think This Is My Final Contract” https://t.co/nkXl0qUEGF
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“I did not think I would ever do it again,” Kimmel said. “I did two of them, and they went well — something crazy happened at one of them with a story I’ll have for the rest of my life. I know how much work goes into them, so I thought, ‘Yeah, I don’t necessarily want to do this ever again.'”
“If you think about it, I did everything I could to avoid being the sole guy,” he added. “I love being involved in other people’s projects. I never had an urge to be the center of attention, and I still don’t. It’s not in my DNA. “
Academy CEO and President Bill Kramer previously said of Kimmel’s return, “We are thrilled about Jimmy returning to host and Molly [McNearney] returning as executive producer for the Oscars. They share our love of movies and our commitment to producing a dynamic and entertaining show for our global audience. We are deeply grateful to Jimmy, Molly and their teams for their incredible creativity and partnership and for going on this ride with us again.”
As far as what could possibly be next for the talk show host/comedian, Kimmel said he’s got a lot of hobbies that keep him busy, but made it clear that won’t include doing stand-up after he stops doing the talk show, the outlet noted.
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“I love to cook, I love to draw, I imagine myself learning to do sculptures,” Kimmel quipped. “I know that when I die, if I’m fortunate enough to die on my own terms in my own bed, I’m going to think, ‘Oh, I was never able to get to this, and I was never able to get to that.’ I just know it about myself.”