After 10 years hosting his late-night talk showConanon TBS (and an additional 18 years onNBCbefore that), Conan O’Brien is finally emerging from the twilight and taking his talents to the streaming world. The talk show veteran has just announced that he will be ending his current show next year and moving toHBO Maxto host a weekly variety show.Conanwill continue running on TBS until June 2021, when its 10th season concludes.
O’Brien commented on the move as one would expect, saying “In 1993 Johnny Carson gave me the best advice of my career: ‘As soon as possible, get to a streaming platform.’ I’m thrilled that I get to continue doing whatever the hell it is I do on HBO Max, and I look forward to a free subscription.” Joking aside, the adjustment will be interesting, since this will not only be the first time O’Brien (voluntarily) strays from a regular late-night slot, but it will also be a big change from daily episodes to a weekly arrangement. Odds are it will still carry that samecharming oddball humorhe’s known for, though.
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This marks the latest of several changes made to the show throughout its decade on the air. In 2019,Conanadjusted its format to a half hour program and removed its musical segments altogether, allowing for amuch more focused vibethat revolved more tightly around O’Brien, his sidekick Andy Richter, and his guest(s) for the night. Then in 2020, the show changed further due to the coronavirus pandemic, replacing the audience with cardboard cutouts and givingConana more laid back and, arguably, “real” feel to it.
O’Brien’s long time producer Jeff Ross had recently made comments that the late-night formula had become stale and was essentially dying, also hinting at the fact that he and O’Brien had been thinking about making some changes for that reason. Considering the timing of those comments and this news, it seems likely that a move like this has been planned for some time, even if the exact details weren’t hammered out just yet.
O’Brien began his run onConanin 2010, a year after being unexpectedly booted from his short-lived host gig atThe Tonight Show. Plenty of drama from Jay Leno and NBC ensured he wouldn’t get a proper shot at hosting the show, and after being unceremoniously dropped, O’Brien quickly made plans to return to the small screen on his own terms. His short but extravagant touring show amusingly called “The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour” (referencing his settlement with NBC following his departure) followed, and he made a deal with TBS to launch the showConanin September of the same year.
There are still plenty of questions that beg to be answered. Exactly what kind of “variety” show will this be? Is Andy coming too? CanHarley Quinnbe a guest since they’ll be on the same platform? No matter how it goes, best wishes go out to Mr. O’Brien and his staff as they look to the future.
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