Spencer Pratt Hits Back at Jimmy Kimmel’s Biting Slam with Blackface Reminder

Screenshot via NBCLA

Los Angeles mayoral hopeful Spencer Pratt fired back at late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel with a reminder of one of his past controversies after Kimmel called the former reality TV star embarrassing.

Pratt responded on Friday to the California Post’s coverage of a Kimmel opening monologue about the Los Angeles mayoral race. While once best known for his role on The Hills and other shows, Pratt has now seen a major political rise in Los Angeles as he’s continually battered Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) over her leadership and response to the Palisades fires (in which Pratt lost his home).

“Barring a late ballot buzzer beater, it appears that Mayor Karen Bass will advance to a runoff against the former reality show villain,” Kimmel said about Pratt. “Sixty percent of the vote has been counted. If that holds, it means that in November, Los Angelenos are going to have to choose between a woman named Karen and a man who is one.”

Kimmel joked that it “could take a while” for LA liberals to determine which of their friends secretly supported Pratt.

“We should be very embarrassed. Spencer Pratt should not be a top-two finalist for mayor,” he said.

An updated vote tally on Friday showed Pratt with around 30% of the vote compared to Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nithya Raman’s 24%. Bass has received 35%. The top two candidates advance to the general election.

Pratt, known for relying heavily on AI-generated videos for social media in his campaign, responded to Kimmel’s criticisms with an image of Kimmel in blackface from his days on The Man Show.

Kimmel used blackface in the past to impersonate celebrities like NBA player Karl Malone. He apologized in 2020, saying the skits were “embarrassing.”

“I’ve done dozens of impressions of famous people, including Snoop Dogg, Oprah [Winfrey], Eminem, Dick Vitale, Rosie [O’Donnell], and many others. In each case, I thought of them as impersonations of celebrities and nothing more,” he said at the time. “Looking back, many of these sketches are embarrassing, and it is frustrating that these thoughtless moments have become a weapon used by some to diminish my criticisms of social and other injustices.”

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