Jimmy Kimmel is threatening legal action against New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers for that Kimmel was associated with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, Rodgers brought up the soon-to-be-made-public list of Epstein’s associates. (The list of names are derived from court documents in Virginia Giuffre’s 2015 lawsuit against Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, which have since been authorized by a federal judge to be unsealed.)
“There’s a lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel, really hoping that doesn’t come out,” Rodgers remarked. “I’ll tell you what, if that list comes out, I definitely will be popping some sort of bottle.”
Kimmel quickly took to Twitter to respond to Rodgers, stating that he has never had any contact with Epstein, and that his name will not be found on any list “other than the clearly-phony nonsense that soft-brained wackos like yourself can’t seem to distinguish from reality.”
Kimmel’s response also seemed to imply that he would not hesitate to take legal action against Rodgers. “Your reckless words put my family in danger,” he wrote. “Keep it up and we will debate the facts further in court.”
Rodgers’ mention of Kimmel seems to be linked to Kimmel’s lampooning of Rodgers’ last appearance on The Pat McAfee Show in February — during which the quarterback reportedly brought up Epstein’s list of associates again. Variety reports that Kimmel aired a clip of the appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and called Rodgers a “tin-foil hatter.”
It’s also worth noting that Disney owns both ABC (which airs Kimmel) and ESPN (which air McAfee), and the company may soon be forced to choose a side.
Dear Aasshole: for the record, I’ve not met, flown with, visited, or had any contact whatsoever with Epstein, nor will you find my name on any “list” other than the clearly-phony nonsense that soft-brained wackos like yourself can’t seem to distinguish from reality. Your reckless…
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) January 2, 2024
