The Walt Disney Company’s blink-and-you-missed-it suspension of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” under pressure from the Trump administration didn’t just spark outrage—it appears to have cost the company millions of subscribers.
According to new data released Monday by Antenna, a firm that tracks streaming subscription trends, cancellations for Disney+ and Hulu surged in September—the same month Disney pulled Kimmel’s late-night show from the air. Antenna found Disney+’s cancellation rate doubled to 8% from 4% in August, while Hulu’s jumped to 10% from 5%.
In raw numbers, that’s an estimated 3 million cancellations for Disney+, up from an average of 1.2 million over the previous three months. Hulu saw roughly 4.1 million cancellations, far above its typical churn.
In the streaming world, where monthly cancellation rates are relatively stable, such a spike is notable.
The backlash was swift after Disney suspended Kimmel’s show on Sept. 17, following criticism from a top federal regulator over remarks the host made about the man accused of fatally shooting conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The Trump administration’s pressure—including public remarks by Brendan Carr, who chairs the Federal Communications Commission—set off a heated debate over free speech and political interference in media.
Related | Trump’s attack on free speech could be costing him bigly
Broadcasters like Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group told the network they would drop the show entirely. Six days later, after a wave of public condemnation—including an American Civil Liberties Union–backed open letter signed by more than 400 celebrities—Disney reversed course.
“Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country,” the company said in a statement. “It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
Kimmel returned to the air on Sept. 23. His first monologue post-suspension—defending free speech and clarifying his remarks—became his most-watched segment ever on YouTube, racking up more than 15 million views in 16 hours. Nexstar and Sinclair restored the show shortly after his reinstatement.
The Antenna data also offers a snapshot of how the controversy resonated with audiences. Churn—the percentage of subscribers who cancel in a given month—hit 8% for Disney+ and 10% for Hulu. By contrast, Netflix’s churn rate held steady at 2% for the 13th straight month, according to The New York Times.
New signups partially offset the cancellation wave. About 2.2 million people in the U.S. subscribed to Disney+ in September, a 10% increase from August. Hulu gained about 2.1 million subscribers, up 5%. Some of those new customers may have supported Disney’s decision to suspend Kimmel; others may have been drawn by the company’s discounted bundle package with Disney+, Hulu, and its newly launched ESPN streaming service, which began streaming full National Football League games that month.
Celebrity backlash likely helped drive the churn. Figures including Cynthia Nixon and Howard Stern publicly announced they were canceling their Disney+ subscriptions and urged others to follow suit.
Related | Broadcasters throw in the towel on censoring Jimmy Kimmel
The data marks the first measurable indication that Disney’s decision to suspend Kimmel may have affected its streaming business. But the full financial impact remains unclear. Because of billing cycles, many cancellations may not appear in Disney’s next earnings report, and the company has already announced plans to stop reporting subscriber numbers after that.
Kimmel’s suspension—and quick return—showed just how fast a political firestorm can ripple through the streaming business. Disney got hammered by both free speech advocates and Trump loyalists, and now its subscription numbers may be the clearest sign of how deeply the controversy hit.
