The future of late-night television has been perilous over the past year or so, but Comedy Central and Paramount delivered some good news for fans of the long-running “The Daily Show.” In a massive sigh of relief, Jon Stewart has signed a new deal with the network to continue hosting the program and act as an executive producer through at least December 2026. It lines up with the one-year deals Stewart has signed since returning to the program in February 2024.
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In a statement, Ari Pearce, Head of Comedy Central, remarked, “Jon Stewart continues to elevate the genre he created. His return is an ongoing commitment to the incisive comedy and sharp commentary that define ‘The Daily Show.’ The renewal is a win for audiences, for Comedy Central, and for all our programming partners. We’re proud to support Jon and the extraordinary news team.”
Stewart will continue to host once a week on Mondays while members of The Daily Show News team fill in from Tuesday to Thursday. His colleagues currently include Ronny Chieng, Josh Johnson, Jordan Klepper, Michael Kosta, and Desi Lydic, as well as Troy Iwata and Grace Kuhlenschmidt. Jen Flanz will remain showrunner and executive producer. Stewart’s long-time manager, the infamous James “Baby Doll” Dixon, is also an executive producer.
According to Paramount and Nielsen data, “The Daily Show” scored a record-breaking performance in the third quarter, including its highest quarterly rating in four years and its biggest share in a decade.
Paramount has faced mounting criticism after cancelling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in July, a decision made before the Skydance merger, and eyebrow-raising changes at CBS News following the installation of Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief. Last week, promised layoffs rocked Paramount, including accusations that people of color were disproportionately let go at CBS News. Stewart’s new deal may temporarily alleviate concerns over changes the Trump-friendly Ellison family has made at the media company so far.
Stewart initially hosted “The Daily Show” from 1999-2015. He then departed before the 2016 election as Trevor Noah took over the program from 2015-2022. The series used a series of rotating guests following Noah’s surprise exit until Stewart returned once a week for the 2024 election. Stewart-associated seasons of “The Daily Show” have earned 72 Emmy Nominations and won 32 statues, including Outstanding Talk Series in 2024.
“The Daily Show” airs weeknights at 11 PM ET/PT on Comedy Central and the next day on Paramount+
