Last week saw the final episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden. It was a star-studded affair. Tom Cruise was there (in a pre-recorded bit). So was Harry Styles. But it’s not just Corden’s run that came to a close. It’s the end of the Late Late Show franchise, after 28 long years on-air. There will (probably) be no replacement host. It’s (likely) over. And the reason? Because CBS simply couldn’t afford to make it anymore.
Sources told Brian Stelter for Los Angeles Magazine (in a bit teased out by Insider) that under Corden’s watch, the show cost a whopping $65 million to make a year. Alas, it made less than $45 million.
“It was simply not sustainable,” said the source, an anonymous executive. “CBS could not afford him anymore.”
The Late Late Show began in 1995 as a very different type of program. It was a serious chat show, hosted by the very serious Tom Snyder, who, unlike other late night talk show hosts, was not amused by Howard Stern. After Snyder left in 1999, it transitioned into a more comedic program, hosted by Craig Kilborn. Craig Ferguson succeeded him in 2005, who was followed by Corden in 2015.
Corden came under fire last year for his allegedly rude behavior in restaurants. But at least he managed to coax no less than Adele when he put together his final “Carpool Karaoke.”
(Via Los Angeles Magazine and Insider)