Conan O’Brien Says Late-Night TV Is Ending — and He Knows the Exact Moment He Realized It
For nearly seven decades, late-night television gave Americans a familiar voice to close out the day: monologues, celebrity interviews, comic relief. Now Conan O’Brien, who spent almost 30 years behind late-night desks, is saying plainly what many viewers have sensed. The tradition is winding down.
O’Brien told The Hollywood Reporter that he believes the era of traditional late-night shows is drawing to a close. And he can pinpoint the exact moment he knew it.
O’Brien said his revelation came after he appeared on Hot Ones in 2024. For those unfamiliar, Hot Ones is an interview series that airs on YouTube — not on any television network. The format is simple: a host and a celebrity guest eat progressively spicier chicken wings while having a conversation. No studio orchestra. No elaborate set. No large production crew of the kind traditional late-night programs require.
The show has become a destination for major stars, the kind of guests who once reserved their appearances for the couches of Letterman, Leno, or Carson. O’Brien’s episode alone has received more than 15 million views.
“That was the moment the scales fell from my eyes,” O’Brien told THR in March 2026. “If a guy can do World Series numbers with overhead that looked, to me, to be about $600, and you have every big star lining up to do his show or Chicken Shop Date … that’s when I profoundly understood that late night shows are in trouble.”
O’Brien made his remarks in the context of the announced ending of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, one of the last remaining pillars of the traditional late-night lineup. For many longtime viewers, its conclusion marks more than a single show going off the air.
O’Brien had also been privately encouraging Colbert not to feel bound to the late-night desk.
“We were out, a few Emmys ago, and he kept saying, ‘I want you to know there’s a lot of fun to be had when this is over, so don’t feel like you need to stay.’ It almost hurt my feelings, but he was just being kind. He Dutch uncle’d me,” Colbert told THR.
O’Brien’s own late-night career spanned nearly three decades. He hosted Late Night with Conan O’Brien from 1993 to 2009, then briefly hosted The Tonight Show from 2009 to 2010 on NBC. He later hosted Conan on TBS until 2021. His departure from The Tonight Show was a widely followed media story at the time.
“I’m of the mind that yes, these shows are going away and will become something else,” O’Brien said.
O’Brien’s reflections went beyond audience trends and digital competition. He also addressed a development with political overtones.
The interview referenced a temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! after comments Jimmy Kimmel made about Charlie Kirk that sparked backlash. Disney then suspended the show after two major affiliate owners pulled the program from their stations. The show later returned following a brief hiatus.
O’Brien did not mince words about this kind of external pressure.
“But I don’t like when other malign forces intervene, because they’re trying to curry favor. That pisses me off,” O’Brien said.
O’Brien has not retreated from public life. He remains active with a podcast and a series on Max, the streaming platform. He is also hosting the 2026 Academy Awards for the second consecutive year.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
