18 Jokes, Stunts, And Interview Moments That Late-Night Hosts Got Called Out For

Jimmy Kimmel recently faced backlash for lying on the stage during Quinta Bronson's acceptance speech at the Emmys. He later apologized, but it's not the first time a late-night host has been called out over awkward or controversial jokes.

A lot of great interview moments have come out of late-night TV, but hosts from shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Late Late Show With James Corden have also become known for jokes and other antics that can range from uncomfortably awkward to highly controversial.

NBC / Via giphy.com

Here are 10 super-awkward jokes and celeb interactions from current late-night hosts:

1. While Quinta Brunson accepted her first Emmy, Jimmy Kimmel lay on the stage for the duration of her speech. He was widely criticized for taking attention away from her historic win.

He was lying on the floor because of a bit he’d done with Will Arnett beforehand.

Afterward, Quinta told Variety, “I know Jimmy Kimmel, and … I felt like the bit didn’t bother me that much. I don’t know what the internet thinks, but, I don’t know … Tomorrow maybe I’ll be mad at him. I’m going to be on his show on Wednesday, so I might punch him in the face … We’ll see what happens.”

She also said, “Jimmy gave me my first big late-night spot and was one of the first people to see Abbott. … I think in that moment, I was just really happy that it was Jimmy up there. I kind of consider him one of the comedy godfathers, and I’m a huge fan of Will Arnett, so I was wrapped up in the moment.”

When Quinta made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the host apologized to her. He said, “It was a dumb comedy bit that we thought would be funny. I lost, and then I drank too much and I had to be dragged out on the stage. And then people got upset. They said that I stole your moment, and maybe I did. I’m very sorry if I did do that — I’m sorry I did do that, actually.”

He added, “And also, the last thing I would ever want to do is upset you because I think so much of you, and I think you know that — I hope you know that.”

Watch Quinta’s full acceptance speech here:

Watch the full moment unfold here:

Then, when Rami touched Jimmy’s hand, he had no idea how to process it.

Watch the full interview here:

Watch the full conversation here:

Watch the full clip here:

Watch the full interview here:

8. After a 2019 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, then–17-year-old Billie Eilish faced backlash over saying she didn’t know who Van Halen was, but two years later, she called out Jimmy for making her look “a little stupid.”

Watch the full video — and the Gen Z trivia quiz Billie gave Jimmy for revenge! — here:

Watch the full clip here:

Watch the full clip here:

On The Howard Stern Show, Andy said, “Listen, I will not be shamed for having fun on New Year’s Eve. That’s why I’m there. That’s why they bring me there.”

He continued, “It’s a four-and-a-half-hour show. The booze started kicking in at around 11:30, so everyone is focusing on kind of the last 45 minutes or hour that we were on the air.”

And now, here are eight controversial or problematic jokes and moments from late-night hosts:

11. In 2013, Jimmy Kimmel was called out over a segment in which he asked 5- and 6-year-olds, “America owes China a lot of money, $1.3 trillion. How should we pay them back?” One of the children answered, “Shoot cannons all the way over and kill everyone in China” — to which Jimmy replied, “OK, that’s an interesting idea.”

After it aired, ABC released a statement that said the network “would never purposefully broadcast anything to upset the Chinese community, Asian community, anyone of Chinese descent or any community at large” and promised “swift action to minimize the distribution of the skit by removing it from all platforms and editing it out of any future airings of the show.”

Jimmy also made an on-air apology. He said, “I thought it was obvious that I didn’t agree with that statement, but apparently it wasn’t. So I just want to say I am sorry. I apologize. It was certainly not my intent to upset anyone. I’m here to turn frowns upside down.”

12. He again came under fire for anti-Asian jokes when he seemingly compared contagious coronavirus variants to the global popularity of BTS.

Here’s the full monologue:

Watch the full clip here:

The Armies were hurt because not only is their fanbase large and perse, but they’d previously embraced James for featuring BTS so many times. The boys and the fans even nicknamed him “Papa Mochi.”

Here’s the full clip:

Jimin also assured him that he was still Papa Mochi.

You can watch the full segment here:

Here’s the full video:

When the crowd groaned, he doubled down, adding, “I don’t know whether that groan was that you like that joke or you don’t like that joke. If you don’t like that joke, you should probably leave now.”

Two days later, he made an apology on Twitter, saying, “To be clear, sexual assault is no laughing matter. I was not trying to make light of Harvey’s inexcusable behavior, but to shame him, the abuser, not his victims. I am truly sorry for anyone offended, that was never my intention.”

16. When Jimmy Fallon had influencer Addison Rae teach him viral TikTok dancers on The Tonight Show, he was criticized for failing to properly credit the choreographers who created the routines.

Here’s the full segment:

You can watch the full set of interviews — and see the creators perform their dances! — here:

She also called her out for posting a picture calling her child “my heart” the same weekend that two scandals about the treatment of immigrant children at the US–Mexico border broke.

In a statement to BuzzFeed News, she said, “I would like to sincerely apologize to Ivanka Trump and to my viewers for using an expletive on my show to describe her last night. It was inappropriate and inexcusable. I crossed a line, and I deeply regret it.”

TBS also provided a statement, which said, “Samantha Bee has taken the right action in apologizing for the vile and inappropriate language she used about Ivanka Trump last night. Those words should not have been aired. It was our mistake too, and we regret it.”

The first time she returned to Full Frontal after the controversy, Samantha again apologized for the insult but called out the fact that it got more attention than the policies she was speaking out against. She said, “I should have known that a potty-mouthed insult would be inherently more interesting to them than juvenile immigration policy.”

She continued, “I’m really sorry that I said that word, but you know what? Civility is just nice words. Maybe we should all worry a little bit more about the niceness of our actions. OK, thanks for listening.”

18. And finally, in 2017, Stephen Colbert faced backlash from both sides of the political spectrum for making a sexual joke about then-president Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

You can watch the whole monologue here:

He continued, “So while I would do it again, I would change a few words that were cruder than they needed to be. I’m not going to repeat the phrase, but I just want to say for the record, life is short, and anyone who expresses their love for another person, in their own way, is, to me, an American hero. I think we can all agree on that. I hope even the president and I can agree on that. Nothing else. But that.”