It’s the dawn of a hashtag NewEra for late night television; the fresh millennial update we’ve all been waiting for to make anything past 11 p.m. that isn’t on HBO (or bursting with bloodshed and naked debauchery) worth tuning in for. The days of our parents’ white-haired, straight-laced comedy are coming to a close.
The faces we’ve known distantly—David Letterman’s of “The Late Show” and Jay Leno’s of “The Tonight Show”—hail from a time before you could post clips of kittens puking on Facebook walls or “accidentally” tweet topless selfies to millions of followers.
Most of us were in the womb, fresh out or yet to be mistakenly conceived when these old boys started their late night gigs that have now become multi-million dollar media franchises, and while they could still pull out a few laughs, the generational gap has always been daunting for network ratings.
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes (or a white girl deleting her Instagram pictures that haven’t gotten enough likes), however, late night TV is saving its crumbling reputation and making a comeback targeted just for the likes of you and me.
Jimmy Fallon, former host of his very own Late Night show and Saturday Night Live alum, took over for Jay Leno on The Tonight Show in February, and brought in over 11 million viewers on his debut, making it the most watched late night show in recent history. Seth Meyers, the beamingly adorable comedian best known as the host of “SNL’s” Weekend Update, slid into Fallon’s old spot and, if nothing else, the pair’s upward movement exemplifies the catapulting power of “SNL” (See: Fey, Wiig, Poehler, Ferrell, Sandler, basically everyone you’ve ever thought was funny). It helps that Lorne Michaels, long-time executive producer of SNL, is also the man behind half of late-night broadcast TV in the first place.
More loosely connected to the SNL star-making machine, though just as powerfully funny, Stephen Colbert of “The Colbert Report” has been picked as Letterman’s replacement for the “Late Show” next year. This, the man who made his own Super Pac and ran for President twice just to prove a point, guarantees a flash-bang of new flavors. Colbert claims he’ll be leaving the political pundit character from his Comedy Central days behind, so no one is quite sure what to expect from the four-time Emmy winner (seven if you count his time on the “Daily Show”), but it’s certain he’ll be taking the brand in an innovative direction.
So a bunch of older white guys are getting replaced with younger white guys, the cycle continues and we all flip the channel to “Game of Thrones,” right?
Maybe not.
These faces were picked to revamp late night because they know exactly how to snag our hyperactive, pop culture-obsessed attention.
Fallon has been hailed for his widespread incorporation of social media, especially twitter with the #hashtag phenomena he parodied with Justin Timberlake. He masterfully mixes the art of trend parody, celebrity tag-team and high-energy sketches, like “Evolution of Hip-Hop Dancing” with Will Smith, that not only make for easily clipped online segments, they demand to be shared with all of your friends—in fact nine of his “Tonight Show” videos hit over one million views in its first week.
Meyer’s segments on “Weekend Update” have similarly been viral video fiends for years, and the infamous Colbert Bump has shown the funnyman’s tactical ability to wield his audience for political and social action. Both bring a sharp wit, a pundit’s charisma and a propensity for breaking convention.
These men have cultivated a smart, college-based following, and they aren’t afraid to make fools of themselves. They are plugged into the same channels and obscene crazes that color our daily basic lives, and they aren’t afraid to call us out on it.
We are witnessing the birth of a late night empire that we’re going to grow old with, one that will keep us laughing. And if they play their cards right, it will be one that redefines the television block as we know it.
Featured photo courtesy of: Slate
