Comedian and actor Bill Burr spoke out on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to criticize Republicans for claiming that homeless people are responsible for starting the ongoing Los Angeles wildfires.
The forecast for Santa Ana winds in Southern California intensified again this week, with officials warning of a heightened “risk of large fire growth” starting Monday. On Sunday, the National Weather Service office in Oxnard issued its most severe red flag fire weather warning, known as a “particularly dangerous situation” alert.
The alert covers a wide area of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including burn zones in Malibu and Altadena, meteorologists said. Gusts are predicted to reach 50 to 70 mph in coastal and valley areas, while mountains and foothills could experience gusts between 60 and 80 mph, with isolated gusts up to 100 mph.
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In an interview with Kimmel last week, Burr mocked "all of these fire experts" on the internet who claim they'd know "how to manage the worst fire in L.A. while sitting there in his underwear." He also praised the firefighters and other rescue workers who have been working around the clock to help those affected by the fires, briefly discussing his own experience getting out of the city.
Pretending to speak in their voices, he said:
‘You know, looking at the footage on the internet I have determined that this was mismanaged.’ If you’re on the internet, you know f**king anything.”
Then he went in on right-wing conspiracy theorists as you can see in the video below.
He said:
"You know, it was, like, the perfect awful thing that could have happened, and it did. And I love how all the chatter out there is about bands of illegal immigrants and homeless people lighting fires. They light fires every day, they’re living outside, they’re f**king cold."
"And this theory that some homeless guy without a car went from Altadena all the way to the Pacific Palisades, he have a hang glider? You know, and they’re talking about looting, but CNN and Fox News are not going to bring up the insurance companies that will just keep everybody’s premiums and still give themselves a bonus."
People online loved Burr's takedown.
In his remarks, Burr also brought up the worsening insurance crisis faced by homeowners in Los Angeles as the immense economic toll of wildfire damage becomes clearer. With estimated losses reaching $135 billion, insurers are expected to cover only $20 billion, leaving a staggering $115 billion shortfall, according to JPMorgan Chase.
Compounding the issue, some insurers abruptly dropped policies last year. State Farm, one of California’s largest insurance providers, came under fire after canceling fire coverage for thousands of Pacific Palisades residents in an effort to avoid financial collapse. In 2023, the company stopped accepting new homeowners’ insurance applications and subsequently dropped 72,000 policies statewide, citing the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires.
Burr then yelled out "Free Luigi!" to reference Luigi Mangione, who was charged last month with second-degree murder, forgery, and three firearm-related offenses. The charges stem from the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson in Midtown Manhattan.
Reports suggest that Mangione underwent back surgery and may suffer from chronic back pain. Authorities revealed the suspect had written a manifesto criticizing the health insurance industry. Police noted that shell casings at the scene were engraved with the words “deny,” “defend,” and “depose,” possibly referencing the 2010 book Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It.
On this matter, Burr said:
"I love how they acted surprised! 'Oh, why did that happen?' He wrote on the bullets why it happened."
After Kimmel joked "Oh, we’re back to Luigi," Burr said, without missing a beat:
"I never left Luigi."
Many appreciated Burr's remarks.
Over the weekend, firefighters worked urgently to bolster containment of the wildfires in Pacific Palisades and Altadena, both areas under the red flag warning due to the looming threat of powerful winds.
As of Sunday, the Palisades Fire, which has scorched over 23,700 acres and claimed at least 10 lives, was 52% contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Meanwhile, the Eaton Fire, which has burned more than 14,000 acres and resulted in at least 17 fatalities, was 81% contained.
