Mentalist Oz Pearlman will not appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live! tonight and has been replaced by Pod Save America’s Jon Lovett.
Deadline understands that Pearlman backed out of the appearance.
The move comes two days after Pearlman was set as the headliner for the White House Correspondents Dinner, which was canceled after a shooting at the Washington, DC event.
It also comes hours after President Donald Trump once again took umbrage at the late-night host, calling for ABC to “immediately fire” Kimmel.
Lovett is no stranger to JKL!, having appeared in February alongside his Pod Save America colleagues Tommy Vietor, Dan Pfeiffer and Jon Favreau.
Lovett, who is also no stranger to a political gag, is on the show as is Anthony Anderson.
Pearlman was standing alongside President Trump when the incident happened and dropped to the ground before hearing gunshots.
It’s not clear why Pearlman pulled out of the show, but he has been doing TV and press since the incident.
He went on Fox News’ One Nation with Brian Kilmeade on Sunday. “This is something nefarious and dangerous, and you feel the hairs on your neck starting to lift,” he said.
“The most surreal moments, potentially of my life, are when President Trump goes down about a foot away from me, and we are side to side, staring into each other’s eyes from a foot away,” Pearlman added.
Kimmel has had another day of it, starting with the First Lady Melania Trump calling for ABC to “take a stand”, followed by her husband’s long Truth Social post, raging against a joke that Kimmel made last week, ahead of the WHCD, suggesting that she had the glow of an “expectant widow”.
Check back later for Kimmel’s take.
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