How Late Night TV Is Downsizing

How Late Night TV Is Downsizing

As someone who grew up with the golden age of late night TV, it’s bittersweet to see the evolution of these shows that once brought laughter and insight into our homes every night. The shift to streaming has undeniably disrupted traditional television formats, and late night talk shows seem to be bearing the brunt of this change.


Do late night talk shows have a future?

Back in the day, suggesting that late-night TV shows were struggling to keep up would have seemed absurd due to their youthful appeal and current pop culture relevance. However, as our entertainment landscape evolves towards on-demand streaming services, it seems that late-night programming might be having a harder time adjusting compared to other television formats.

It seems that late-night programming has shifted into a phase of financial conservation, as one seasoned late-night producer puts it, “there’s undeniably a different financial landscape when it comes to budget allocations.

Starting September 6th, NBC’s popular late-night show, “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”, revealed its intention to reduce its weekly broadcasts. Instead of airing five times a week, the show will now be on four nights. The Friday episode will no longer be live but replaced with a replay instead.

It was observed that “The Tonight Show” was the only one among the significant late-night programs that aired five times a week.

This year, NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers” had to part ways with their in-house band due to budget reductions. Similarly, last year CBS decided to conclude the “Late Late Show” following James Corden’s departure, replacing it with the more affordable comedy game show called “After Midnight.

According to media analyst Brad Adgate, it’s quite astonishing because these late-night variety shows have been financial powerhouses for a long time. They attracted a younger demographic, were cost-effective to produce, and had more advertising slots compared to prime-time television.

It used to be that late-night shows had larger profit margins compared to prime-time programming. However, times have shifted dramatically.

Currently, these cultural phenomena predominantly thrive on platforms like YouTube and TikTok. Although their content is available and often successful on these channels, the earnings don’t align with the amount they pour into their productions. Additionally, traditional TV viewers who are older aren’t as attractive to advertisers due to their viewing habits.

According to Adgate, the viewers are growing older, and the preferred demographic isn’t tuning in on television. Instead, they tend to catch brief clips the following day on YouTube.

Over time, the viewership of Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, and Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night shows has seen a decrease, similar to many traditional TV programs. This trend is largely due to viewers transitioning their habits towards streaming platforms, as well as choosing to watch clips from these shows on YouTube and social media sites.

Five years ago, I was thrilled as a fan to see The Late Show leading the pack among late-night talk shows, boasting an impressive viewership of 3.81 million, surpassing The Tonight Show’s 2.44 million and Jimmy Kimmel Live’s 2.04 million. In 2023-24, The Late Show retained its No. 1 spot, but with a noticeable decline of approximately 32% from 2018-19, settling at around 2.6 million viewers. Jimmy Kimmel Live moved up to second place with 1.82 million viewers, marking a slight decrease of about 11% compared to five years prior. The Tonight Show, on the other hand, slipped down to third place in viewership with 1.43 million, losing a significant 41% of its 2018-19 total.

The situation didn’t improve at 12:35 a.m., as the show “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (983,000 viewers) saw a drop of approximately 470,000 viewers (32 percent) compared to 2018-19. On the other hand, CBS’s program “After Midnight”, which debuted in January, averaged around 730,000 viewers over its initial five months.

As a gamer, I remember hearing last year that the Late Late Show on CBS was bleeding around $15 million to $20 million annually, according to Brian Stelter’s report in LA magazine. Although James Corden’s departure wasn’t sudden, it seems clear that the financial losses were a significant factor in CBS ultimately deciding to end the show after he moved on.

Initially, James Corden wanted me to join for just five years when he first asked. However, we ended up doing eight and a half years instead. I believe that James and the showrunner, Ben Winston, had an idea of how long the show would be successful. Additionally, there was a budget cycle approaching, and they knew that a smaller budget meant they would have to let go of many crew members who had been with the show for a considerable time. This conversation took place in July, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Network executives have been scrutinizing budgets more closely lately, seeking methods to reduce costs or validating expenditures. One possibility: Late-night talk show hosts have traditionally functioned as unofficial masters of ceremonies within their networks; however, the responsibilities associated with this role have grown substantially in recent years, potentially explaining why these programs remain active. Although a television broadcast might run at a loss, it could compensate for the deficit through other revenue streams.

Stars that appear at night can present award ceremonies such as the Emmys or Oscars, and offer sharp comments during corporate gatherings like TV’s upfront week.

Many talk show hosts like Fallon, Kimmel, and Colbert not only host their own shows but also produce other programming (such as “That’s My Jam” by Fallon and “Live in Front of a Studio Audience” by Kimmel), or extend their personas to other industries. For instance, Jimmy Fallon is the public figurehead for a haunted house experience called “Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares,” which NBCUniversal is currently building in New York’s Rockefeller Plaza. Additionally, he also has a ride at Universal Studios Orlando.

It’s worth noting that streaming platforms such as Netflix and Peacock are yet to find a successful late-night format, despite their efforts, with hosts like John Mulaney and Amber Ruffin trying various experiments. Whether or not they will eventually crack the code is uncertain.

Watts noted that late nights are undergoing significant and swift transformations. He added that The Late Late Show left at the perfect moment – we managed to sneak past the peak and escape just in time,” he said.

However, as Meyers humorously pointed out during NBCUniversal’s upfront on May 13 at Radio City Music Hall, there’s usually the possibility that things could take a turn for the worst.

It’s simply delightful to return to Radio City! I recently posed this question to an NBC executive: ‘Why do you host the upfronts here annually?’ Their response was charmingly candid, ‘I enjoy gazing at the marquee and thinking, indeed. These are challenging times for television, but they could be worse. We could be in radio.'” (First person paraphrase from a fan perspective)

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2024-09-12 15:55