How are you Saying goodbye to a late night show redefined by your presence? Well, if you listen to the advice of Comedy Central executives, Paramount Global boardrooms, and the rest Daily Show staff – you don’t have. But for Trevor Noah, who entered behind the Daily Show desk for the last time as host on Thursday night, say goodbye to the party — and thank you.
“One last time,” Noah said, opening the show. “Let’s celebrate.”
Bidding farewell to the press and crew and semi-successfully playing Liverpool favorite “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” Noah spent his final episode urging viewers to value human life and context over the divisions of the contestants — all while looking back. on a show that changed forever under his leadership.
When Noah announced his departure from the show earlier this month, the bombshell news had fans coming up with reasons for his sudden exit. Industry insiders said the announcement came as a shock not only to Paramount and Viacom executives, but to the show’s cast and crew, who heard the news firsthand along with the show’s studio audience. “Part of the reason I did it was because I didn’t want anyone to be someone who then tells someone else, then tells someone else, who then tells someone else,” Noah told. Hollywood Reporter. “And this is where we make something. [The show] it’s where we are together, our space, and so to me, it seemed like a natural way to tell everyone at the same time.
From 2023, when Daily Show hosted by a rotating roster of guests, Noah will embark on a 28-city North American tour. But according to Noah, no war or explosions or a big job opportunity made him leave, nothing but the desire to do something, anything, new. This lack of planning was enough for journalists Michael Kosta, Desi Lydic, Dulce Sloan, Roy Wood Jr., and Jordan Klepper all played softly during their turns in the spotlight.
“Are you quitting your job without doing anything?” Sloan said. “Wow, you really are half-white.”
While the big question on everyone’s mind is what Noah does next, the episode took a surprisingly high-profile look back at Noah’s path from unknown stranger to beloved (and divisive) public figure. Instead of featuring some of the host’s most influential videos, there was a gentle mash-up of his favorite tagline, “Get the jazz outta here, man.” It also included cheeky celebrity messages from Oprah, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross, Nick Offerman, Bill Gates, and former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton—a surefire exercise in why we should be teaching celebrities how to shoot iPhone videos horizontally. . But Noah took the praise and thanks with gusto, continuing to focus on the listeners and managers in the audience who chose him in the first place.
“Always taste,” he said in a moment of reflection, advice he directed to his younger version. “There are moments in life that mean something. [But] it’s hard to understand in life how all growth comes from bad times… And don’t invest in crypto.”
When Noah was approached by executives and given the blessing of former host Jon Stewart in 2015, he was unknown in the world of American comedy and had only been a Daily Show writer for three months before stepping in as a host. But Noah’s inexperience with American politics, which many saw as a weakness, gave the former broadcaster a new perspective during the rise of candidate Donald Trump. Although later years would see Noah criticized for his tendency to “just talk like men” during tense political situations, Daily Show the show anchored the episode with a global perspective, allowing Noah to channel his humor with a sincere desire to see the good in others. Since then, the South African comedian has increased the show’s online presence tenfold, and battled declining ratings to become a millennial television staple.
Trevor Noah says goodbye while filming his last movie Daily Show on December 8, 2022.
Comedy Central
Does Noah’s departure signal a major shift in late-night television? It is difficult to say. In our current understanding of the format, hosts must be fresh enough to keep the series from stalling but strong enough to draw in and keep viewers watching. And for every success story like Fallon, Colbert, and Stewart, the class that Noah joins, failure can push comedy’s progress back years. That wasn’t the case with Noah, as Thursday’s guest, comedian Neal Brennan noted. “[You] it made a difference until midnight,” he said, handing Noa his real *flowers. “You turned around Daily Show inside The Breakfast Club.”
It is easy to imagine the finale Daily Show and Noah that was bigger than the one recorded on Thursday. There were no great guests, no sweeping memories, and a surprising lack of tears. But what there was at every break, every reset of the camera, every moment backstage as reporters hugged and kissed and scolded the growing children, was a celebration. There were more thanks than punchlines, and even when Noah pushed everything aside to thank Black women for their support and knowledge.
“Who do you think is teaching me?” He said, mentioning his mother and grandmother. “Unlike everyone else, black women don’t have the ability to dance and know.”
Trevor Noah said goodbye to his seven-year run of the show with a confident man of his choice – and aimed to create a final bow that focused on the friends and family that mattered most to him.
“It’s been the craziest ride that I didn’t predict and I didn’t expect,” Noah told the packed audience. “It’s been an honor, thank you.”
