“The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” has cut out one day from its typical five nights per week schedule.
After taping four times a week during the summer, the late night talk show will continue its current schedule into the fall TV season, which previously saw “The Tonight Show” air original episodes during all five weekday nights. Like its late night counterparts, the NBC late night show will air a repeat during Friday nights.
As “The Tonight Show” moves into its new fall schedule, it joins the taping schedule of other late night talkers, including CBS’ “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers” and Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.”
The news comes several months after budget cuts prompted NBC to cut the 8G Band — which had been a staple of “Late Night With Seth Meyers” for the last decade — from the upcoming season of the late night show. The show’s associate musical director Janney, who shared the news in an interview with Vulture, commented that the cost-cutting measures are “the reality of broadcast and a shrinking market — streaming eating into this, and YouTube eating into that. Streaming is not making money, either. So budgets everywhere have been cut and cut and cut.”
Pulling back to four tapings a week seems to reflect solely budget cuts and not NBC’s commitment to Fallon, as the comedian recently extended his deal with NBCUniversal through 2028.
Under the deal, Fallon will continue his hosting duties for “The Tonight Show” through 2028, continuing the show’s streak as the longest-running talk show on television.
“For nearly 30 years, Jimmy Fallon has brought laughter into the homes of millions and charmed audiences from the stages of 30 Rock,” NBCUniversal Media Group chairman Mark Lazarus said in a statement announcing the renewal. “It’s been a privilege to witness Jimmy at the helm of the ‘The Tonight Show’ and we’re thrilled to see what innovations he and the incredible staff will deliver in the years to come at the network.”
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