In his last episode Thursday night as host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Noah thanked his audience and black women, who raised him and educated him about America and the world.

Noah noted that when he started, there were days when it was hard to fill the studio.

"If you want to know about America, talk to black women," he went on to say. "Black women understand how bad it is when things go bad … Black people know that when things go bad it goes worse for them."

Noah suddenly announced he was leaving the show in September after seven seasons.

This week Comedy Central said The Daily Show will have guest hosts starting January 17. The guest hosts include Al Franken, Chelsea Handler, D. L. Hughley, Leslie Jones, John Leguizamo, Hasan Minhaj, Kal Penn, Sarah Silverman, Wanda Sykes and Marlon Wayans.

Some Daily Show correspondents and contributors will also take turns as host.

"Trevor redefined the show, as did Jon Stewart before him, and as we look to the future, we are excited to reimagine it yet again with the help of this incredible list of talent and correspondents along with the immensely talented Daily Show team," said Chris McCarthy, president/CEO Paramount Global's Paramount Media Networks unit. ■

Trevor Noah is leaving The Daily Show after seven years of hosting Comedy Central’s signature late-night show.

The comedian, who took over as host of the late-night show from Jon Stewart in 2015, made the announcement during the taping of Thursday night’s program, saying that his “time is up.”

“I find myself filled with gratitude for the journey,” Noah said to the audience during the taping, in a statement released prior to the show’s airing. “It’s been absolutely amazing and something that I never expected. We’ve laughed together, we've cried together, but after seven years I feel like it’s time.”

There is no timetable set for Noah's departure, according to Comedy Central.

“We are grateful to Trevor for our amazing partnership over the past seven years,” the network said in a statement. “With no timetable for his departure, we’re working together on next steps. As we look ahead, we’re excited for the next chapter in the 25-plus year history of The Daily Show as it continues to redefine culture through sharp and hilarious social commentary, helping audiences make sense of the world around them.”

During Noah”s tenure, the show was nominated for several Emmy Awards, including a 2022 Emmy for Outstanding Variety Talk Series. Along with Noah, the series featured correspondents Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta, Desi Lydic, Dulcé Sloan and Roy Wood Jr., along with contributors Lewis Black and Jordan Klepper.

Noah’s announced departure from cable’s late night stage follows the July cancellation of TBS’s late-night series Full Frontal with Samantha Bee after seven seasons. ■

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah goes on hiatus June 18, and resumes Sept. 13 “with a brand new look and feel,” promises Comedy Central. The show will produce content across its digital, social and podcast platforms throughout the summer. 

Trevor Noah took over as host of The Daily Show in 2015, after a run as correspondent starting in 2014. Born in South Africa to a black mother and white father, Noah is the author of Born a Crime, about growing up amidst apartheid. 

In 2020, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah received eight Emmy nominations, including ones for Outstanding Variety Talk Series and Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series. The year before, The Daily Show picked up two nominations. 

Noah hosted the Grammys on CBS in March. He has produced and starred in 11 comedy specials, including his most recent, Trevor Noah: Son of Patricia, which streams on Netflix. 

Noah may not have the decision-making power of the top executives on this list, but he is perhaps its most widely recognized face. And in a presidential election year, during a pandemic and months of social-justice protests, his was an important voice in the comedy world and also the cultural landscape.

Early in the pandemic, he paved the way as the first late-night host to shift to doing shows from his home, beginning March 23. (He also has paid the salaries of about two dozen furloughed staffers.) Steering away from the laughs, he gave National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci 13 minutes of airtime on March 26. In a subsequent interview, Noah explained that he worried about experts and facts being sidelined for opinions. “American news generally is geared more toward entertainment and engagement than information, because information can be very boring,” he said. “We needed to give this expert a platform.” (The show was viewed on YouTube nearly 12million times.) 

As the only Black host of a major late-night show, he also offered a unique perspective on the George Floyd killing and subsequent protests, explaining clearly and potently why, in some early cases, the protests shifted into violence and looting. (Noah, who is from South Africa, is interracial; his background is explored in incisive detail in his acclaimed memoir, Born a Crime.)

He also pushed the limits of linear television this year, persuading Comedy Central to extend the show to 45 minutes to allow more time for interviews, even if it meant the show no longer neatly fit the traditional half-hour time slots. 

But Noah is more than just his nightly time on Comedy Central on the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning show. (The show earned six Emmy Award nominations in 2020.) He has helped the show move into the modern era, breaking free of the linear constraints with engaging social media content, including an award-winning digital series and podcasts for his global audience. This year, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah earned Webby Awards for Best in Comedy and Best Web Personality/Host.”

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah has expanded to 45 minutes following the success of The Daily Social Distancing Show, said Comedy Central. Longer episodes begin April 27. The show airs weeknights 11 p.m. ET/PT.

It is the first time in the program’s 24-year history that The Daily Show will run for 45 minutes, not 30.

Recent guests include New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, Bill Gates and Dr. Anthony Fauci.

Comedy Central said the expanded episodes arrive “at a moment in time when viewers are heading to Noah, not just for satire and escapism, but also for an honest point of view and as a source of trustworthy information.”

Late in 2014, Noah became a correspondent on The Daily Show. When host Jon Stewart stepped down, Noah took on the host’s role in September 2015.

The Daily Social Distancing Show began last month, with Noah hosting from home amidst the pandemic. 

Comedy Central will go live on Election Day with live episodes of its late night shows The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and @Midnight With Chris Hardwick, the network said Tuesday.

The Daily Show With Trevor Noah’s Nov. 8 telecast will air live from 11 to midnight, providing up to the minute Election coverage from Noah and Daily Show correspondents Ronny Chieng, Desi Lydic, Jordan Klepper, Hasan Minhaj and Roy Wood Jr. as the election results come in, according to network officials.

@Midnight will go live for the first time in its history as host Hardwick and panlists Whitney Cummings, Ron Funches and Paul Tompkins react to all the social media chatter regarding the election.

Comedy Central will begin its primetime coverage of the election at 10 pm with politically-themed episodes of Tosh.O and Drunk History, said the network.