Add Jimmy Fallon to President Donald Trump’s burn book. After the Tonight Show host, 43, expressed regret over his 2016 interview of Trump, 72, the president blasted the comedian.
“.@jimmyfallon is now whimpering to all that he did the famous ‘hair show’ with me (where he seriously messed up my hair), & that he would have now done it differently because it is said to have ‘humanized’ me,” Trump tweeted on Sunday, June 24. “He is taking heat. He called & said ‘monster ratings.’ Be a man Jimmy!”
Fallon indeed sparked criticism with that September 2016 interview, during which he lobbed Trump softball questions and asked to ruffle the then-presidential candidate’s hair. Nearly two years later, in an episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s Award Chatter podcast released on Monday, June 18, Fallon reflected on that backlash.
“It was definitely a down time,” he said. “And it’s tough for morale. There’s 300 people that work here, and so when people are talking that bad about you and ganging up on you, in a really gang mentality … You go, ‘Alright, we get it. I heard you. You made me feel bad. So now what? Are you happy? I’m depressed. Do you want to push me more? What do you want me to do? You want me to kill myself? What would make you happy? Get over it.’ I’m sorry. I don’t want to make anyone angry — I never do and I never will. It’s all in the fun of the show. I made a mistake. I’m sorry if I made anyone mad. And, looking back, I would do it differently.”
In response to Trump’s tweet about Fallon’s comments, the comedian announced on Twitter he’d be donating to Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services in the president’s name.
