In the words of former YouTuber Jenna Marbles, “Life is short, but also like terribly and insufferably long at the same time.” So much can happen in a lifetime. You can get a job at The Tonight Show. You can lose that job. In the case of Jay Leno, you can get that job back. In the case of Jimmy Fallon, you can get called “Lonnie Donegan” over and over again by David Letterman in a way that can only be described as a throwback level of anti-Irish sentiment. But you can also make triumphant returns. Conan O’Brien returned to The Tonight Show after getting yeeted from the show and subsequently diminished in the Universal Studios Orlando ride about The Tonight Show. Fallon and O’Brien discussed the Muppet Closet, which is extremely inside baseball for late-night comedy. For things that worked in an outside-baseball context, read on!
5. Mike Epps Answers Henry Cavill’s Interview Qs
Jimmy Kimmel had a host of questions for Henry Cavill this week on Jimmy Kimmel Live! They were, ostensibly, the least-answered questions in Google for Henry Cavill. Cavill was game, answering those questions and also explaining the mechanics of Warhammer 40K to Kimmel. But after Cavill bowed on late night, Kimmel asked the exact same questions of Mike Epps. This was great — a dumb bit, executed with aplomb and a can-do spirit. Late-night hosts should swap questions among guests more often. Frankly, it’s more revealing than the questions tailored to any one person/body of work.
4. Seth Meyers Has a Cute Kid
Seth Meyers shared a clip of his lobby baby freaking out at the end of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. First of all, it’s cute: A child is boxing Seth Meyers’s ears out of fear, and you want me to remain unmoved? Can’t be done. Secondly, it’s nice seeing Daniel Radcliffe be so normal about this franchise while J.K. Rowling continues to be 150 percent insane about it. It’s so easy to be chill, and Radcliffe makes it look easy. Which it is. So thank you, Daniel Radcliffe.
3. Stephen Colbert’s Offensive Weapon
Sometimes, one of the best things on late night is a truly off-the-cuff remark from a mostly on-the-cuff host. (I’m remembering Fallon telling Dakota Johnson he’d never worked a day in his life, for example.) When Maren Morris got upgraded from musical guest to couch-sitter, we got such a remark. Morris asked Colbert if he ever misses his old persona from The Colbert Report, with Morris following up asking if he wishes he still had that armor. To which Colbert responded, “No, it’s a dagger. It’s not armor. It’s not defense, I promise you.” It was a fascinating peek behind the kayfabe.
2. Jimmy Kimmel Pours One Out for the 99-Cent Store
RIP, the 99 Cents Only store. A California institution, mourned by the most L.A.-centric late-night show. Even James Corden’s The Late Late Show had that British flavour layered over its CBS Television City locale. Kimmel shouted out his Angeleno crew by having them text their mothers about the bankruptcy of one of the best dollar-store chains in the biz. The answers were revealing, the in memoriam set to “Nearer My God to Thee” was fitting, and the particular shout-out to dollar-store pregnancy tests was real as hell. Working-class comedy will never fully die as long as Kimmel keeps tapping the under-the-line talent on his show.
1. The Boys (Conan O’Brien and His Long-Ass Legs) Are Back in Town
We all can triumphantly return, now and again. Whether it’s to high-school show choir or to that Taco Bell something unspeakable happened at, there’s always a chance to get a standing ovation upon revisiting. And then to talk about how tall you are and how Prince was your friend while back at the old hangout? An incredible flex. And hats off to Lonnie and the Tonight Show team for getting this thing together.
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