ENTERTAINMENTStephen Colbert Gives Donald Trump a 'Quick Brain-Check' After President Confuses Him With Jimmy Kimmel: Watch
Donald Trump mixed up the late-night comics while hosting the Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday, December 7.
Dec. 9 2025, Published 2:02 p.m. ET
Stephen Colbert mocked Donald Trump for the president's latest flub during his show's monologue on Monday night, December 8.
Trump confused Colbert, 61, with fellow late-night comic Jimmy Kimmel, 58, while hosting the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday, December 7. Comparing himself to the latter, he said, "If I can’t beat out Jimmy Kimmel in terms of talent, then I don’t think I should be president."
The 79-year-old POTUS mistakenly claimed Kimmel had previously hosted the prestigious awards ceremony, while Colbert actually hosted it three years in a row, from 2014 to 2016.
Stephen Colbert mocked Donald Trump for confusing him with Jimmy Kimmel.
Stephen Colbert Corrects Donald Trump
'I called him and Jimmy Kimmel has never hosted the Kennedy Center Honors,' Stephen Colbert said.
Addressing Trump, Colbert, said, "Just a quick brain-check...I called him and Jimmy Kimmel has never hosted the Kennedy Center Honors."
He continued, "But there’s the thing. I did the three years leading up to Trump becoming president."
The 48th Kennedy Center Honors will air later this month on December 23 via CBS and Paramount+.
Donald Trump Didn't Prepare for His Hosting Role
The president told reporters he wanted to stay loose and be himself.
Trump admitted he didn't prepare before hosting the ceremony, telling reporters he wanted "to be a little bit loose."
"You know what you have to be? You have to be yourself," he added.
The president revealed in August that he agreed to host the annual ceremony "at the request of a certain television network."
During his in-person announcement, he joked about his duties, saying, "I have agreed to host — do you believe what I have to do?"
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Jimmy Kimmel Called Donald Trump a 'Bully' on His Show
'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' was placed on an 'indefinite' hiatus on September 17 but was since reinstated.
Trump's blunder comes months after Kimmel's ABC show faced suspension in September due to pressure from Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, whom Trump appointed.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! was pulled off the air after the host made controversial comments surrounding the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk.
Following the show's return less than a week later, Kimmel branded Trump a “bully."
Stephen Colbert Denies Show Cancelation Was 'Politically Motivated'
Jimmy Kimmel made a statement against CBS in August by taking up a billboard to support Stephen Colbert over his show's cancelation.
This all comes following Colbert addressing "theories" that The Late Show’s sudden cancelation was "politically motivated," as the announcement came shortly after he criticized CBS parent company Paramount’s $16 million settlement with Trump.
Speaking to a news outlet in an interview published on Monday, November 3, Colbert spilled, "My reaction as a professional in show business is to go: That is the network’s decision."
The show is set to conclude its 11-season run in May 2026.
