Heartbroken and ready for a change, Jimmy Kimmel is planning to walk away from his late-night TV throne when his contract runs out because, according to sources who claim his priorities have shifted after his beloved son Billy's devastating health crisis, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
“Jimmy and his wife are putting family above fame,” a source spilled to gossip columnist Rob Shuter. “With their financial future set, they’re ready to leave the limelight to focus on what really matters. Jimmy’s contract is up in 2025, and he has no plans to sign on again!”
The wake-up call came after 7-year-old Billy endured his third open-heart surgery to correct a congenital heart defect.
Jimmy’s wife, Molly McNearney, is a co-head writer for Jimmy Kimmel Live! — but sources said they would both skedaddle from the show.
“Life’s too short to waste on a job that no longer sparks joy,” squealed an insider.
A publicist for Kimmel said it was “silly” to think Jimmy had discussed his exit with anyone, “especially given his son’s recent surgery.”
But a spy insisted Jimmy and his wife were ready to move on: “Though they’ll likely stay busy producing and developing shows behind the scenes, their main focus will be spending precious time with their family!"
Kimmel first revealed his fourth child's congenital heart condition on his show in 2017, shortly after Billy's birth.
"They did an echocardiogram, which is a sonogram of the heart, and found that Billy was born with a heart disease," Kimmel explained. "Something called tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia. Basically, the pulmonary valve was completely blocked, and he has a hole in the wall between the left and right sides of his heart," the TV star explained.
Billy had his first successful open-heart surgery at just three days old, undergoing a second surgery several months later to close up the holes.
"They want to have a third, hopefully non-invasive procedure sometime maybe in his early teens to replace the valve he has now," Kimmel said in 2017.
Last month, as the TV host shared the news of Billy's third open-heart surgery at Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA).
"This weekend, our boy Billy had his third (of three, we hope) open-heart surgery," the TV host wrote in the caption of a photo showing his son smiling in a hospital bed.
"We went into this experience with a lot of optimism and nearly as much fear and came out with a new valve inside a happy, healthy kid," Billy's father added.
Since Billy's birth, Kimmel has become a staunch supporter of CHLA and an outspoken advocate for healthcare reform.
Kimmel and his wife Molly McNeary, an executive producer and co-head writer on his show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, also share a 9-year-old daughter Jane.
In addition, Kimmel has two adult children, Katie, 32, and Kevin, 32, from his first marriage to Gina Maddy from 1988 to 2003.