Jimmy Fallon Trashes Donald Trump for Shutting Down Kennedy Center Over Failed Rename Bid by Mocking Trump-Branded Casino Closures
Jimmy Fallon hit out at Donald Trump's Kennedy Center renaming row during the latest episode of 'The Tonight Show.'
Sept. 17 2026, Published 9:29 a.m. ET
Jimmy Fallon took a swipe at Donald Trump closing the Kennedy Center over a naming row during the latest episode of The Tonight Show.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the comedian, 51, addressed the furore in his opening monologue on Wednesday, much to the delight of his studio audience.
Fallon Takes Aim At Trump's Other Renovations
Fallon namechecked Trump's Reflecting Pool in his takedown.
Reacting to the president shutting down the Kennedy Center because it lacks his name, Fallon quipped the only thing that could stop Spider-Man: Brand New Day's box office success was the president putting his name on it.
He then focussed on Trump’s legal war with the Kennedy Center, an institution named after late President John F. Kennedy Jr.
Fallon joked: "After a judge ruled that President Trump can’t add his name to the Kennedy Center, Trump announced that he's shutting it down and canceling the planned renovations," before adding, "Trump canceled the renovations. The Reflecting Pool looked at the Kennedy Center and said, 'Consider yourself lucky.'"
'Casinos Shut Down Because They Had His Name On It'
Fallon's monologue had audience in stitches.
As Fallon went on, he took aim at Trump's past bankruptcy issues with his casinos, quipping: "Yep, Trump is shutting it down because it doesn’t have his name on it, as opposed to his casinos – which shut down because they did have his name on it."
Fallon then sarcastically called the drama "a big deal," before noting that people are still going to call the venue the Kennedy Center even if Trump managed to pull off the rebrand.
"But Trump is furious about the Kennedy Center situation. Just listen to what he’s saying behind closed doors," Fallon said, before the Tonight Show editors teed up a parody video showing the president begging to put his name on "something."
RadarOnline.com recently told how Trump’s latest bid to have his name displayed at the Kennedy Center has been shot down by a federal judge – despite warnings the famed cultural institution is facing a potential financial collapse.
Trump's Truth Social Rant
The president said renovations of Kennedy Center won't happen until his name is on it.
Following the Kennedy Center board's vote to immediately close the main building, Trump took to Truth Social and said the renovation and reconstruction would not move forward until the D.C. Circuit rules on the board-approved name.
The closing will take place immediately, however, the Renovation and Reconstruction, which is a very large and complex job, cannot begin until such time as the D.C. Circuit rules on the Board's approved name," Trump wrote. "If the ruling is a negative one, which it should not be, and is not overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Reconstruction and the Renovation of The Kennedy Center will not take place."
According to court documents obtained by Radar, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled the Kennedy Center's board cannot move forward with plans to place the words "renovated and restored by Donald J. Trump" on the building or rename its sprawling campus the "President Donald J. Trump Plaza."
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Trump is desperate to rebrand Kennedy Center.
The ruling marks the latest setback in the board's efforts to publicly recognize Trump for his role in the Center's renovation and financial rescue. The board passed a resolution in August proposing three forms of recognition for Trump, including the building inscription and plaza renaming.
A third proposal would eventually place the words "endowed by The Trump Kennedy Center Fund" on the building if the fund reaches $100million.
However, Cooper found the first two proposals violated an existing permanent injunction barring the Kennedy Center from installing additional memorials without congressional approval. "Simply put, Defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress's blessing," Cooper wrote.
