Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, which debuts next month with the actor Will Smith and the rock band U2, will look familiar to those who appreciate his current work in the time slot following Jay Leno.
“This show has completely changed from when I first started,” Fallon said of Late Night, which he has hosted for five years. “I feel like we’ve blossomed into what will become the new Tonight show.”
Fallon rejected the idea of changes to make himself more appealing to the older, middle American audience that likes Leno. It’s a delicate subject at NBC, where executives felt feel Conan O’Brien’s limited appeal doomed their first effort to replace Leno. They anticipate Fallon’s light-hearted comedy to translate better.
On February 6, Leno closes his two-decade run on The Tonight Show with Billy Crystal and Garth Brooks as guests. On February 17, Fallon debuts a week’s worth of shows at midnight, following NBC’s coverage of the Winter Olympics.
He moves into his regular time slot a week later and will be followed by Seth Meyers, Fallon’s successor at Late Night, who has his Saturday Night Live chum Amy Poehler booked as his first guest.
Fallon said he called Leno when he got the Late Night job to reassure him he wasn’t gunning for Leno’s gig. He said they have spoken regularly and he has taken some of Leno’s advice, most prominently to make his monologues longer.
“He’s a good guy,” Fallon said. “He’s really treated me well.”
Fallon’s Tonight Show “should be goofy and fun and make everybody laugh. That’s our job,” he said. He said he appreciates showing different sides of celebrities by getting them involved in skits or games, such as when Tom Cruise cracked raw eggs on his head. Fallon’s musical skits are among his most memorable. He said he alerted the New Jersey governor Chris Christie’s office before his recent duet with Bruce Springsteen, where he spoofs Christie’s traffic jam scandal.
The formal title of the show is changing to the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Fallon said it was an homage to the show's roots. – Associated Press
