Roy Wood Jr. started his job as a correspondent on The Daily Show on the same day as the last host, Trevor Noah. When Noah surprised everyone — including Wood — last fall by announcing his retirement from the show after just seven years, the Birmingham, Alabama-born comedian immediately became a front-runner for the gig.
But now, with the Comedy Central series set to return on Monday, October 16, Wood has announced he will also be leaving after not being offered the hosting spot.
“I can’t come up with a Plan B while I’m still working on Plan A,” Wood said Thursday in a new interview with NPR’s Eric Deggans. “The job of a correspondent… it’s not really one where you can juggle several things. [And] I think eight years is a good run.”
In a statement sent to The Daily Beast, Wood said, “After eight fantastic years at The Daily Show, during which I was able to pursue my comedic and political interests with some of the best writers, producers, crew and correspondents imaginable.” Because I made the decision to move on.”
He added that he is “grateful to Trevor Noah, Paramount and especially Comedy Central for giving me the opportunity to also produce three one-hour stand-up specials, for allowing me to host two award-winning podcasts, and that they allowed me to write and direct my own comedy pilot, write a movie and much, much more” and looks forward to “finding more ways to work with them down the road.”
“Until then, I’m excited to develop new ideas and see what the future holds for me in the shifting sands of late-night television, scripted comedy and whatever else the comedy gods have in store for me in 2024 and beyond , has ready,” he concluded Wood, who recently made a name for himself by hosting the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
A Daily Show spokesperson also praised Wood, saying, “Roy Wood Jr. is a comedic genius and a beloved teammate. His insight and humor helped us make sense of the 2016 election, the pandemic, and countless hours of Fox News. We thank him for his time with us and can’t wait to see what he does next.”
Wood’s decision to leave the show after it became clear he wouldn’t get the big chair echoes comments he made on “The Last Laugh” podcast shortly after Noah’s announcement to The Daily Beast. After saying that he himself would never say “no” to the opportunity, Wood admitted that it might be strange to stay with someone else.
“It depends on the host. It would depend on the creative direction of the show,” Wood said at the time. “What are you trying to do? How do I fit in? And does this creative direction fit with my comedic abilities and give me the opportunity to express who I am?”
So with Wood out of the game, who are the main contenders to take over Comedy Central’s decades-long late-night franchise?
The broadcaster has stated that it plans to continue rotating guest presenters through the end of 2023 and will introduce the new presenter in early 2024. Wood’s former correspondent colleague Hasan Minhaj was considered a strong candidate – until he came under fire for fabricating large parts of his stand-up act and subsequently spreading those lies in the real world.
Comedian Chelsea Handler has been clear about her desire to host The Daily Show, telling The Daily Beast in January that it was a “perfect” job for her and that there would “definitely be conversations” about it following her guest-hosting stint. And just last night, in a conversation with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show, Handler reiterated her argument that a woman should take over hosting The Daily Show, regardless of whether she is or not.
When asked directly by Fallon if she was in the race, Handler said, “What I will say is that I think we’re in a very important cultural moment where women are dominating the culture,” quoting Taylor Swift, Beyoncé and the Barbie movie. “Whether it’s me or not, they should hire a woman. Wouldn’t you all love to see a woman behind the desk?!”
Of course, Comedy Central could do what it did eight years ago and hire a relatively unknown comedian to take on one of the biggest jobs in late night. This decision worked pretty well – until it didn’t.
Back in 2015, the broadcaster declined to ban one of its most experienced correspondents, John Oliver, who had recently stepped in for host Jon Stewart in the summer and was widely seen as his most obvious replacement. As a free agent, Oliver decided to move to HBO – and has since won seven consecutive Emmy Awards in a category formerly dominated by The Daily Show.
For more information, check out Roy Wood Jr.’s The Last Laugh podcast.