Jimmy Kimmel delivered a sharp roast of Peyton and Eli Manning during Disney’s 2025 Upfront event, poking fun at the former NFL stars’ musical talents and eliciting groans from the audience. The late-night host’s Jimmy Kimmel Manning brothers joke referenced the Menendez brothers in an unexpectedly dark comparison.
At the May 13 event in New York City, Peyton and Eli Manning kicked off the show with an elaborate musical number. The duo cleverly inserted their last name into popular ABC shows like High Potential, Abbott Elementary, and Paradise, joined onstage by the shows’ cast members including Kaitlin Olson and Sterling K. Brown.
Following their performance, Kimmel didn’t hold back during his monologue at the Peyton and Eli Manning Disney Upfront. “I do want to thank the Manning brothers for finally answering the question, ‘What if two jars of mayonnaise could sing?’ The answer is, they can’t,” he joked, sparking laughter and groans.
Taking the roast further, Kimmel added, “That was worse than what the Menendez brothers did,” referencing the infamous criminal case that recently saw Lyle and Erik Menendez resentenced. The audience reacted with audible groans to the dark humor, with Kimmel cheekily asking, “Too soon or too late?”
The comedian closed his segment with another jab: “Do give us money before we send them out again,” urging advertisers to fund the Mannings’ next musical outing.
Beyond roasting the Mannings, Kimmel also took aim at rival networks CBS and NBC. He mocked NBC’s new cable channel group Versant, calling it “something you subscribed to by accident,” and lamented ABC’s lack of fresh shows. He wrapped up with a sincere appeal to advertisers to support journalism by backing CBS’s 60 Minutes.
The Manning brothers musical number was part of their promotion for the upcoming series Chad Powers, inspired by Eli Manning’s character from his ESPN docuseries Eli’s Places. Despite the jokes, Peyton and Eli took the humor in stride, alongside fellow actors who playfully shut down any ideas of the NFL greats joining their series.
