Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show episodes from home ended their four-month run last night as the host returned to his studio at 30 Rock. The NBC late-night host is the first to return to his studio, which comes a week after Conan O’Brien moved his TBS show from home to Largo in Los Angeles. According to Deadline, Fallon’s show is filming with a “limited crew,†and like Conan, the episodes will tape without an audience, and guests will be interviewed from home.
Last night’s Tonight Show opened with a segment that follows Fallon — wearing a mask, of course — on his journey back to 30 Rock. “Everyone here in the studio has tested negative for COVID, and all of our crew are wearing masks and face shields, and we’re all six feet apart,†Fallon said during his opening monologue. “We are taking this very seriously, and I want to thank NBC for really doing a great job of making sure everyone here feels safe.†Fallon said he is hosting the show from the studio “to show you that there is a light at the end of the tunnel if we all do our part to keep each other safe.â€
Fallon also, of course, sang a song just for the occasion. Instead of “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,†he sang “It’s Beginning to Look a Bit Like Normal.†(Spoiler alert: It’s not. At all.)
One of Fallon’s first guests for his return to the studio was Governor Andrew Cuomo, who told him, “New York is really open now that you’re doing your show again.†Cuomo also chatted about how New York City managed to fight back against the coronavirus. “We went through hell and back, as you know, in New York,†he said. “We went from having the worst infection rate in the country — we now have the best infection rate. So we really turned the corner. New Yorkers stepped up. They really did the right thing: They did the socially distancing, they stayed at home. And we tamed the beast here in New York. So we just have to cross our fingers and hope that it stays there.â€
So far, O’Brien and Fallon are the only two late-night hosts to move their shows out of their homes during lockdown. Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show and Seth Meyers’s Late Night continue to air remotely produced episodes from their homes this week, while Jimmy Kimmel Live! is also airing remote episodes with guest hosts. James Corden’s The Late Late Show is currently on hiatus.