Jimmy Kimmel doesn’t actually hate Matt Damon—their “feud” is a long-running comedy bit that started as an improvised joke and turned into a shared, scripted gag they both lean into for laughs.

Quick Scoop: What’s Really Going On?

  • The “Jimmy Kimmel hates Matt Damon” thing is a running joke , not real animosity.
  • It began around 2005, when Kimmel ad‑libbed, “Apologies to Matt Damon, we ran out of time,” to cap off a bad show and make his producer laugh.
  • The line got such a strong reaction that he kept repeating it, and it slowly evolved into a fake, over‑the‑top “feud.”
  • Damon later joined in with deliberately dramatic, insult-heavy interviews and sketch bits, clearly played for comedy.

The short answer to “why does Jimmy Kimmel hate Matt Damon?” is: he doesn’t—it’s a deliberately exaggerated comedy rivalry that both of them perform for the audience.

How the Joke Started

  • In season 3 of Jimmy Kimmel Live! (around 2005), Kimmel ended a weak episode with: “I want to apologize to Matt Damon. We ran out of time.”
  • Matt Damon wasn’t even booked on the show; Kimmel just picked a very famous name off the top of his head to sell the joke.
  • A producer loved it, so Kimmel repeated the line night after night as a signature sign‑off.

When Damon finally came on as a guest, the bit went further: as soon as he sat down, the band played him off and Kimmel again claimed they were out of time, turning “we’re out of time, Matt” into a recurring humiliation gag.

Why It Looks Like “Hate”

The comedy works because Kimmel plays the petty host who really can’t stand Damon, while Damon plays the perpetually disrespected A‑lister. Common bits include:

  • Kimmel “banning” Damon from the show or cutting him off mid‑segment, pretending the show has no time for him.
  • Sketches where Damon is made to sit on a tiny chair onstage, ignored while other guests are interviewed.
  • Running gags where Kimmel trashes Damon’s movies or uses him as the butt of sports or scandal jokes in monologues.
  • Red‑carpet moments where Damon calls Kimmel “a terrible human being” and “a demonstrably bad man” with an obviously joking tone, right as Kimmel photobombs or interrupts him.

All of this is framed and shot like late‑night comedy, with audience laughter, other celebrity participation, and heavily produced sketches, signaling that it’s performative rather than real hostility.

Iconic Moments in the “Feud”

A few of the most famous bits help explain why people think there’s real heat:

  1. “I’m F king Matt Damon” Video**
    • Kimmel’s then‑girlfriend Sarah Silverman came on the show in 2008 and debuted a music video with Damon, mock‑confessing she was “f**king Matt Damon.”
 * Damon plays it completely straight-faced and enthusiastic, leaning into the joke of “stealing” Kimmel’s girlfriend.
  1. “I’m F king Ben Affleck” Response**
    • Kimmel responded with his own star‑packed video, “I’m F**king Ben Affleck,” featuring Ben Affleck and other celebs, turning the Kimmel–Damon bit into a full Hollywood in‑joke.
  1. Oscar Nights and Big‑Stage Jabs
    • During Oscars that Kimmel hosted, he used Damon as a recurring punchline, from mocking Damon’s movies to playing him off with the orchestra.
 * Damon has returned the favor by heckling or pretending to sabotage Kimmel’s segments.
  1. Ongoing “We Ran Out of Time” Gags
    • Even in more recent years, Kimmel still finds excuses to “run out of time” whenever Damon appears remotely or in sketches, glitching the feed or cutting away at the punchline.

These bits help keep the “why does Jimmy Kimmel hate Matt Damon” question trending, because new viewers stumble on a clip without the backstory and assume it’s genuine tension.

Do They Actually Get Along?

  • Multiple retrospectives describe the Kimmel–Damon feud as one of late‑night TV’s longest‑running inside jokes , emphasizing that it’s consciously written and performed as comedy.
  • Coverage frames their dynamic as rooted in mutual respect, with both men consistently returning to the bit and involving their close friends like Ben Affleck.
  • The fact that Damon repeatedly shows up—sometimes in elaborate, clearly pre‑planned sketches—strongly implies he’s in on it and enjoys the gag.

So in practice, Kimmel “hates” Damon the way a wrestling heel hates his rival: it’s a character, a storyline, and a piece of entertainment that both sides keep alive because audiences still love it.

Bottom Note

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.