Seth Meyers Says He ‘Won’t Try to Deconstruct the Late Night Model’

Seth Meyers is set to take over NBC’s 12:35am franchise Late Night in February. With the premiere still seven months away, we (and Meyers) don’t know much about what his version of Late Night will look like, but Meyers and told EW today a little about his plans for the show:

One of the main things we’re doing now, which will be the most essential part of the success of the show, is staffing. You’re trying to find people who you trust and like their comedic voices. That’s been a really fun part of this summer so far. I don’t think we’re gonna try to deconstruct the late night model. But I feel like every time one of these shows succeeds, it’s because it’s built around the strengths of the host. So we’re trying to recognize my strengths. [Laughs]

A report in May said Seth Meyers’s show would de-emphasize multiple celebrity guests and might even go forward without a band and with a smaller audience to cut costs, but none of that is set in stone yet. As far as the timing of Meyers’s exit from  SNL goes, that decision hasn’t been made yet. Meyers’s Late Night producer Michael Shoemaker (SNL, Fallon) says, “We haven’t worked it out with Lorne [Michaels, the SNL and Late Night exec producer] yet. But yeah, there’s no reason why he can’t be on there for a while.†Meyers adds with a laugh, “Nothing is worse in our lives than saying something before Lorne does.â€

Seth Meyers Says He ‘Won’t Try to Deconstruct the Late […]