George Santos is filing suit against Jimmy Kimmel, claiming the late-night host cheated on him
February 18, 2024
Former U.S. Rep. George Santos alleged in a lawsuit Saturday that late-night host Jimmy Kimmel tricked him into making videos on the Cameo app that were used to ridicule the disgraced New York Republican on the show
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!”.
The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York names Kimmel, ABC and Walt Disney Co. as defendants. A Disney representative listed as media contact for the
“
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
“
show did not immediately respond to an Associated Press email seeking comment.
Santos, who was expelled from the House of Representatives last year after being charged with multiple counts of fraud and donor theft, is suing for alleged copyright infringement, fraudulent inducement, breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
Kimmel misrepresented himself to induce Santos to create personalized videos that capitalized on and ridiculed his gregarious personality, the lawsuit alleges.
Through Cameo, Santos received requests from individuals and companies looking for personalized video messages. Unbeknownst to Santos, Kimmel submitted at least fourteen requests using false names and stories, according to the complaint.
From December onwards, the videos were played per segment
called
Will Santos say it? says the suit.
In one of the clips, Santos congratulates the alleged winner of a beef eating contest, citing the feat of consuming 6 pounds
(2.7 kilograms)
of loose ground beef in less than 30 minutes, amazing and impressive.
To be fair, Kimmel’s false requests were funny, but what he did was a clear violation of copyright law, Robert Fantone, an attorney for Santos, said in an email.
Santos is seeking statutory damages totaling $750,000 for the five videos he created that were played on the show and on various social media platforms. He also requests that other damages be assessed at trial.
The ex-legislator is confronted
a whole series
criminal charges, including allegations that he defrauded campaign donors, lied to Congress about his wealth, received unemployment benefits while employed and used campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses such as designer clothing. He also allegedly made unauthorized charges to the credit cards of some of his donors.
Santos pleaded not guilty to a revised charge in October.
On Tuesday, Democrat Tom Suozzi won a special election for Santos’ former seat.

Fernando Dowling is an author and political journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. He has a deep understanding of the political landscape and a passion for analyzing the latest political trends and news.