Political satire has long been part of American culture, but in the Trump era, one joke could end a comedian’s career

The criticism often spills into their personal lives, raising concerns about their families’ safety

But after Stephen Colbert’s exit from late-night television and Melania’s calls to fire Jimmy Kimmel, others are feeling the wrath of Trump and his MAGA supporters.

MAGA doxxed Laura Benanti over her Melania Trump impressions on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” forcing her to relocate. (Photos by Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images; Late Night With Stephen Colbert YouTube screenshot)

Tony Award-winning actress Laura Benanti says she experienced exactly that when her world got flipped upside down.

Best known for portraying Melania Trump on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” Benanti recently revealed that the role had frightening real-world consequences.

During an appearance on “The Downside with Gianmarco Soresi” podcast, she alleged that a right-wing activist distributed her private information to supporters after objecting to her portrayal of the first lady.

According to Benanti, the email included her home address, triggering immediate fears for her family’s safety.

“I had to literally move,” she said. “We had to move from our apartment that we owned into a rental, and then the pandemic happened. We moved to New Jersey.”

The relocation proved costly. Benanti said she was suddenly paying both the mortgage on the apartment she owned and rent for her family’s new home.

The frightening ordeal escalated even further and affected her children.

“Someone took a picture of me walking my daughter to school,” she revealed.

Benanti said she only learned about the email from someone on her team who had received it. Ironically, her driver, who also worked security and identified as a Trump supporter, subscribed to the same newsletter as the activist.

“He texted me, and he was like, ‘This is what’s going on,’ and ‘What are we going to do?’” she recalled.

Benanti couldn’t help but inject a little humor into the frightening moment, “And I was like, ‘You tell me. These are your people!’”

Her Melania Trump impression debuted on “The Late Show” in July 2016 and quickly became one of the program’s most recognizable recurring sketches.

Sporting the former first lady’s signature pout, measured cadence and exaggerated Slovenian accent, Benanti reprised the role on and off for nearly a decade.

She returned again in 2023, continuing the character through the show’s final season. In February, she mocked Melania’s documentary project, and her last appearance came in April, just weeks before “The Late Show” ended its run.

For a time, however, Benanti and those around her questioned whether the impression was worth the risk.

“We all sort of were like maybe we don’t do it for a little while,” she explained, “and then it just felt like I was being a coward.”

Looking back, she admitted she may have made a different decision had she known what was coming.

“I don’t think I would have done it,” she said. Even so, Benanti still believes political satire serves an important purpose.

“I can’t tell you the amount of people who come up to me who are like, ‘Thank you, I need that,’” she said.

Benanti’s story quickly sparked reactions online.

In The Daily Beast’s comment section, one reader wrote, “She did us all a service in helping us laugh at the madness of the Reich. That she and her family would face threats is very upsetting but not surprising given the level of hatred and intimidation prevalent in the MAGAot world.”

Another commenter added, “Her Melania impression was so good on Colbert’s show!”

Fans on YouTube echoed that praise. “Love her!! Her Melania impersonation on Colbert was the only silver lining of the first Drumf term. She killed it.”

On X, another user summed up the sentiment simply: “MAGA are the weakest people under the sun.”

Benanti’s experience is not an isolated one.

After Kimmel’s “expectant widow” joke about Trump, Melania went on a mission to get the comedian off the air for good this year.

Trump backed her efforts after he got Kimmel suspended for weeks in 2025 over jokes and insults about his presidency, physical health, his marriage and his children.

Neither worked as Kimmel remains on air Kimmel signed off from “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on June 18, telling fans he will be “taking the next two months off – this time voluntarily.”

Benanti became collateral damage from MAGA because of her boss, Stephen Colbert. For nearly a decade, Colbert made Trump a target on “The Late Show.” Trump hit back on Truth Social, later celebrating CBS’ decision to end the show in 2026. Their back-and-forth became a defining late-night battle.

Benanti is now touring her one-woman show, “Nobody Cares.” It opened in London before stops in Chicago, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Boston, wrapping in spring 2027.

‘Madness!’: Melania Trump Impersonator Says Her World Was Turned Upside Down After Stephen Colbert Show — Then MAGA Fans Reportedly Crossed a Line She Never Saw Coming