Well, our Non-NBC Late Night News didn’t stick around too long. Rob Shuter, citing sources close to former Tonight Show host Jay Leno, says that Leno is considering leaving NBC in the wake of this debacle as well. Says the source:
“Now that Conan has made it clear he is leaving the troubled network, Jay is considering doing the same. They have put Jay in a terrible position. It looks like he is the reason that Conan is now without a job. Jay is a great guy and it’s not fair that due to NBC’s stupidity he looks like the bad guy,” a TV insider tells me.
“Plus, what happens when Jay does return to the 11:35 slot if his audience doesn’t immediately follow? How can he possibly trust the same network that canceled Conan after only seven months?”
For all the flack Leno has gotten over the past few days, heck, years, his leaving NBC and getting himself out of the mess would be a pretty selfless thing to do, putting aside the fact that he put the network in this predicament to begin with. It also should be noted that while Conan slammed NBC in his statement and said he wouldn’t do the show at 12:05, he left open the possibility that he’d stay if the situation could be resolved. A big step towards that would be the departure of Jay Leno. As always, we’ll keep you posted on the developments as they come along.
P.S. Jimmy Kimmel did his entire show last night as Leno. Watch here.
Michael
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