It’s official: late-night comedian Conan O’Brien is heading back to the late-night arena this November on TBS. The show will air from 11PM to midnight (Monday-Thursday), pushing Lopez Tonight to the midnight spot. George Lopez couldn’t be happier about the new addition: “I can’t think of anything better than doing my show with Conan as my lead-in. It’s the beginning of a new era in late-night comedy.”
So what happened with FOX? Well, we’re not entirely sure at the moment. Deadline points out that Team Conan was looking “outside the network box” for quite some time now. In fact, at one point Conan was in talks with Microsoft about bringing the show to Xbox! But in the end, Conan decided to go with TBS. The executives at TBS apparently impressed Conan on a level no other network could come close to. Then George Lopez sealed the deal with a simple and convincing phone call.
According to Deadline, Conan will own his yet-to-be-named show, just like David Letterman owns his show and Craig Ferguson’s under Worldwide Pants. Reruns of Family Guy and The Office will lead into Conan’s new show and likely continue to garner a young audience for the ex-Tonight Show host. How does the competition look? Since he’s moving from network to cable TV, he won’t be in the same ratings ring as Letterman, Leno, and the others. However, there will be tough competition at the 11PM spot in cable world, as he’s pitted directly against Comedy Central’s Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report. On cable, Conan will be able to get away with, let’s say, more risqué material, and this creative freedom will fuel the show with laughs. Something tells me he’ll do just fine.
With his nation-wide comedy tour starting today in Eugene, Oregon, today is a great day for Conan O’Brien. “In three months I’ve gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I’m headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly.” Look after the break for the full PR announcement.
[Via Deadline]