How do you say goodbye to the night show defined by your presence? Well, if you listen to the advice of Comedy Central executives, Paramount Global boardrooms, and all Daily Show employees – you don’t want. But for Trevor Noah, who stepped back Daily Show The last desk as a host on Thursday night, you say goodbye to the party – and thank you.
“For the last time,” said Noah, opening the show. “Let’s have fun.”
Saying goodbye to the crowd of journalists and staff who enjoyed the semi-successful performance of Liverpool’s favorite “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” Noah ended his last show encouraging viewers to value people’s lives and circumstances over division – all while looking back. The show changed completely under his leadership.
When Noah announced his exit from the show earlier this month, the bombshell revealed that it sent fans scrambling for reasons behind the departure. Industry insiders said the announcement came as a shock not only to Paramount and Viacom executives, but to the showrunners and crew, who heard the news sitting next to the studio audience. “Part of the reason I did it that way is because I didn’t want someone to be someone who would tell someone, then tell someone, then tell someone,” Noah said. Hollywood reporter. “And this is where we create something. [The show] that’s when we’re together, our place, and so to me, it seemed like a normal way to tell everyone at the same time.”
Starting in 2023, when The Daily Show hosted by a rotating list of guests, Noah embarks on a 28-city North American stand-up tour. But according to Noah, there was no fight or boredom or great job opportunity that made him leave, nothing but the desire to do something, anything, new. This lack of planning is enough for journalists Michael Kosta, Desi Lydic, Dulce Sloan, Roy Wood Jr., and Jordan Klepper all gave soft laughs during their turns watching.
“Are you resigning for nothing?” Sloan said. “Wow, you’re really clean.”
While the big question on everyone’s mind is what Noah is going to do next, the show took a surprising look at Noah’s path from unknown newcomer to beloved (and controversial) public figure. Instead of showing some famous videos, there was a simple version of his favorite tagline, “Get the fuck out of here, man.” This also included a hilarious celebrity sendoff from Oprah, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross, Nick Offerman, Bill Gates, and former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, a true case of why we need to train celebrities to shoot flipped iPhone videos. But Noah received praise and thanks from the bottom of his heart, continuing to focus on the audience and the elders in the audience began to choose him.
“Enjoy every moment,” he said during a moment of reflection, advice he directed at a younger version of himself. “There are moments in life that mean something. [But] It’s hard to appreciate in life that all growth comes from difficult times… And don’t invest in crypto.”
When Noah was tapped by former comedian Jon Stewart in 2015, he was unknown in the world of American stand-up comedy and had only been a Daily Show reporter for three months before joining. But Noah’s unfamiliarity with American politics, which many saw as weakness, gave the former host a new perspective during the rise of Donald Trump’s candidacy. While the following years would see Noah criticized for his tendency to “just speak like a man” in the midst of some of the worst political situations, Daily Show the actor organized the game around the world, allowing Noah to increase his sense of humor with the goal of seeing the good in others. Since then, the South African actor has increased the show’s online presence tenfold, and fought the early dip in ratings to become a staple of millennial primetime television.
Trevor Noah says it’s okay during his last taping The Daily Show on December 8, 2022.
Friends Comedy Central
Does Noah’s departure signal a major shift in late-night television? It’s hard to say. In our current understanding of the format, the hosts must be fresh enough to prevent the series from stalling but established enough to draw in and keep viewers watching. And for every success story like Fallon, Colbert, and Stewart, Noah’s class now joins, failure has the potential to push the comedy’s continuity back. This is not what happened to Noah, as Thursday’s guest, comedian Neal Brennan noted. “[You] it brought different kinds in the middle of the night,” he said, giving Noah his own *flowers. “You have repented The Daily Show walk in The Breakfast Club.”
It is easy to imagine the latter Daily Show and Noah which was bigger than the one taken from China. There were no great guests, no sweeping memorials, and a surprising lack of tears. But what was there during every break, every camera, every moment in the background as reporters hugged and kissed and stroked the growing children, was a celebration. There was more gratitude than punchlines, and even a moment when Noah pushed everything aside to thank Black women for their support and knowledge.
“Who do you think teaches me?” he said while talking to his mother and grandmother. “Unlike everyone else, Black women can’t get around to finding out.”
Trevor Noah said goodbye to his seven-year career with the air of a man confident in his decision – and focused on making a final bow that stopped the friends and family that meant the most to him.
“It’s been the craziest journey I could have ever predicted and never imagined,” Noah said to the packed audience. “It’s good, thank you.”
