Trevor Noah is the latest in a string of recent departures from late-night hosting gigs that were once seen as lifetime positions.
Photo:
caroline brehman/Shutterstock
Trevor Noah, host of Comedy Central’s late-night political satire program “The Daily Show,” said he is planning to step down after seven years in the role.
Mr. Noah made the announcement to the studio audience attending a taping for Thursday night’s show. He said he was reflecting on the past few years doing the show and covering the Trump administration and then dealing with the pandemic and decided he was ready to call it a day.
“My time is up,” Mr. Noah said during Thursday night’s episode. “There is another part of my life I want to carry on exploring.”
There is no date set for Mr. Noah to depart. A Comedy Central spokeswoman said the network and Mr. Noah are “working on the next steps.” Comedy Central is owned by Paramount Global.
Variety earlier reported the news of Mr. Noah’s announcement.
Mr. Noah in 2015 succeeded Jon Stewart, who during his long tenure as host made “The Daily Show” must-see television for his edgy and sarcastic takes on politics and the media. While Mr. Noah didn’t achieve the same popularity as Mr. Stewart, the South African native won praise for his earnest approach to hosting the show.
Mr. Noah is the latest in a string of recent departures from late-night hosting gigs that were once seen as lifetime positions. Samantha Bee, who hosted a weekly political commentary show on TBS, saw her show get canceled amid declining ratings, and CBS late-night host James Corden earlier this year said he was leaving his show after nearly nine years.
Conversely, ABC’s “
Jimmy Kimmel
” recently renewed his contract for another three years.
The competition for viewers has gotten more intense in late night in recent years. The shows’ audience has shrunk as the number of other options—including streaming services—kept growing. The one new late-night show that has established itself is
Fox
News’ “Gutfeld,” which like Mr. Noah, looks at the news of the world through a comedic lens. Fox News parent Fox Corp. and Wall Street Journal parent
News Corp
share common ownership.
There is no obvious replacement for Mr. Noah as host of “The Daily Show,” where Mr. Noah worked as a contributor before being promoted to the top spot. Comedy Central has been unsuccessful in its recent efforts to create another late-night franchise a la Stephen Colbert’s “The Colbert Report,” which followed Mr. Stewart’s show for many years.
Among the shows Comedy Central tried to launch to follow “The Daily Show” was a talk show hosted by comedian and writer Larry Wilmore and “The Opposition.” starring comedian Jordan Klepper.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Appeared in the September 30, 2022, print edition as ‘Trevor Noah To Leave ‘Daily Show’.’
Trevor Noah is the latest in a string of recent departures from late-night hosting gigs that were once seen as lifetime positions.
Photo:
caroline brehman/Shutterstock
Trevor Noah, host of Comedy Central’s late-night political satire program “The Daily Show,” said he is planning to step down after seven years in the role.
Mr. Noah made the announcement to the studio audience attending a taping for Thursday night’s show. He said he was reflecting on the past few years doing the show and covering the Trump administration and then dealing with the pandemic and decided he was ready to call it a day.
“My time is up,” Mr. Noah said during Thursday night’s episode. “There is another part of my life I want to carry on exploring.”
There is no date set for Mr. Noah to depart. A Comedy Central spokeswoman said the network and Mr. Noah are “working on the next steps.” Comedy Central is owned by Paramount Global.
Variety earlier reported the news of Mr. Noah’s announcement.
Mr. Noah in 2015 succeeded Jon Stewart, who during his long tenure as host made “The Daily Show” must-see television for his edgy and sarcastic takes on politics and the media. While Mr. Noah didn’t achieve the same popularity as Mr. Stewart, the South African native won praise for his earnest approach to hosting the show.
Mr. Noah is the latest in a string of recent departures from late-night hosting gigs that were once seen as lifetime positions. Samantha Bee, who hosted a weekly political commentary show on TBS, saw her show get canceled amid declining ratings, and CBS late-night host James Corden earlier this year said he was leaving his show after nearly nine years.
Conversely, ABC’s “
Jimmy Kimmel
” recently renewed his contract for another three years.
The competition for viewers has gotten more intense in late night in recent years. The shows’ audience has shrunk as the number of other options—including streaming services—kept growing. The one new late-night show that has established itself is
Fox
News’ “Gutfeld,” which like Mr. Noah, looks at the news of the world through a comedic lens. Fox News parent Fox Corp. and Wall Street Journal parent
News Corp
share common ownership.
There is no obvious replacement for Mr. Noah as host of “The Daily Show,” where Mr. Noah worked as a contributor before being promoted to the top spot. Comedy Central has been unsuccessful in its recent efforts to create another late-night franchise a la Stephen Colbert’s “The Colbert Report,” which followed Mr. Stewart’s show for many years.
Among the shows Comedy Central tried to launch to follow “The Daily Show” was a talk show hosted by comedian and writer Larry Wilmore and “The Opposition.” starring comedian Jordan Klepper.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Appeared in the September 30, 2022, print edition as ‘Trevor Noah To Leave ‘Daily Show’.’