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In an unexpected turn of events, Jon Stewart is back on Comedy Central's “The Daily Show”. Stewart, who left the program in August 2015, will return as the host of the Monday edition of the show as well as an executive producer as we move into the 2024 Election Season. The story was published by Variety and other entertainment publications on Wednesday afternoon. Stewart is slated to begin his once-per-week hosting gig on February 12th and his stay on the program could extend even further into 2025.
Chris McCarthy, President/CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios, said in a statement, “Jon Stewart is the voice of our generation, and we are honored to have him return to Comedy Central’s ‘The Daily Show’ to help us all make sense of the insanity and division roiling the country as we enter the election season. In our age of staggering hypocrisy and performative politics, Jon is the perfect person to puncture the empty rhetoric and provide much-needed clarity with his brilliant wit.”
The return of Stewart to the program elicited fanfare from viewers of his era of the program from 1999-2015. Stewart turned “The Daily Show” into one of the most important media vehicles in the political landscape, truly finding its voice during the first term George W. Bush Administration. Stewart connected with younger viewers who, like him, disagreed with the policies and moves of the elected officials in power at the time.
He emerged as the quintessential voice of a generation, a contemporary philosopher whose medium of expression was comedy. The public reacted with widespread disappointment when he chose to step away from politics, particularly in the context of the 2016 elections, where a celebrity-turned-presidential candidate, and sometimes a subject of jokes, Donald Trump, emerged. However, he stayed relevant with surprise appearances on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and eventually landed a weekly show on Apple TV+ entitled “The Problem With Jon Stewart”.
“The Problem With Jon Stewart” signaled a change of tone for the legendary comedic political voice. The episodes of the series were more topical and not as driven by current events. Stewart was more serious and measured in his commentary on the program and was prone to have longer monologues that deconstructed issues more succinctly than what was allowed in the 30 minutes of time allotted on “The Daily Show”. He also would speak with panels of people directly involved or affected by the issue that he discussed. Moreover, he frequently engaged in contentious interviews with politicians and world leaders, earning applause for his no-nonsense approach that was deemed uncommon in conversations with regular journalists.
Stewart's Apple TV+ show was canceled in October 2023 due to creative differences with the streamer but, months later, he's back in the house that he built. Stewart's voice is still needed in the political spectrum and his sage wisdom could help as we make sense of everything going on in the world. But, lost in the announcement of Stewart's return is Roy Wood Jr.
Will Roy Wood Jr. Ever Get A Chance At His Own Show?
This is now the third time that Wood has been passed over for the position of host for “The Daily Show”. First, Hasan Minhaj was favored to lead the program over Wood before his bid was ended due to controversy over jokes told in his stand-up. Then, the program continued its guest host format after the WGA Strike. Wood departed the program.
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“I can't come up with Plan B while still working with Plan A,” Wood said in comments obtained by NPR following his exit. “The job of correspondent…it's not really one where you can juggle multiple things. [And] I think eight years is a good run.”
Now, a week after Wood made headlines at the Emmy's for mouthing that Comedy Central needed to find a host for “The Daily Show”, he was passed over again to bring back Stewart and kickstart correspondents hosting the show throughout the 2024 Election Season.
Wood's exclusion from the opportunity to even be truly considered to serve as host is puzzling. Before his departure, Wood was the most tenured correspondent on the program as he joined during Trevor Noah's first year hosting in 2015. The Florida A&M journalism school alumnus proved his ability to craft timely jokes while also having a defined point-of-view in his monologue at the 2023 White House Correspondents Dinner in April. His appearance drew a combined audience of 2,198,00 viewers on CNN and MSNBC.
He even served as host for a week on “The Daily Show”, averaging 424,500 viewers in his week at the helm of the program.
Roy Wood Jr. (April 3rd-April 6, 2023) (Source: ShowBuzz Daily)
| Date | Viewership Number |
| Monday, April 3, 2023 |
341,000 viewers |
| Tuesday, April 4, 2023 (Featuring Jon Stewart) |
466,000 viewers |
| Wednesday, April 5, 2023 |
411,000 viewers |
| Thursday, April 6, 2023 |
480,000 viewers |
Average Viewers: 424,500 viewers
With his remarkable comedic talent, extensive experience, and impressive track record as a guest host, one can't help but wonder why Roy Wood Jr. hasn't been given the opportunity to lead “The Daily Show” or helm his own program permanently. Comedy Central isn't at fault for doing what's best for its business, and the return of Jon Stewart will create incredible intrigue around the program.
But, Comedy Central has to afford a younger voice the opportunity to lead the program. They aren't unfamiliar with this path, as Comedy Central gave a young comedian in his late thirties named Jon Stewart the opportunity to lead the program. At 45, Wood could lead the program as it adjusts to a fractured late-night television industry that is increasingly losing market share as video-sharing platforms such as TikTok and YouTube reign supreme. There is no more perfect time to appoint a host that could position the lauded program to a new era of politics and media.
But, Wood must receive the opportunity to do so. For The Daily Show, it appears he won't have the opportunity to until 2025. But, at some point, Comedy Central and the industry at large has to respect the talent of Wood and his ability to be a leading man on his own program.
