Hosting âThe Tonight Showâ for 10 years is a milestone worth celebrating, as Jimmy Fallon recently did with a special on NBC. But his tenure at the network actually spans 26 years: âSaturday Night Liveâ (1998-2004), âLate Night With Jimmy Fallonâ (2009-14) ; and âTonightâ since 2014. In another decade, heâll top Jay Lenoâs run; heâll need another 20 to surpass Johnny Carson as the longest-running host of the 70-year-old series.
Does Fallon have that much in him? So far, heâs navigated bad press (for being playful with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2016) and backstage scandal (a reportedly âtoxicâ writersâ room atmosphere in 2023) â but his numbers are promising: âTonightâ has nearly 100 million followers across social media, and its digital content has drawn 2.2 billion views across those platforms.
These days, Fallon seems relaxed, savvier and confident about captaining his late-night ship. Heâs settled into his place in the world in a 30 Rock corner office, decorating it accordingly: stained-glass Buddy Holly window, fish tank, family snapshots, photo of himself brushing his teeth with Paul McCartney. He spoke with The Envelope from that office about finding his footing, why late night matters â and getting through the next show.
You were very experienced before taking over âTonight,â but Lorne Michaels still had to go to bat for you. Did you ever ask him why?
I just think he believes in me. He knows if he hands me the ball, Iâll do whatever I can to score. I work hard and I practice and I just want to make sure itâs done as best as possible.
Are you a perfectionist?
I think so. When I started, everything had to be tickety-boo. But as the years have gone on, Iâm more open to things falling down and dealing with that in the moment.
TV as a medium is undergoing a lot of changes. So what is the purpose of late-night shows?
Theyâre an escape from reality, No. 1; No. 2, itâs necessary for pop culture to show you whatâs out, what people are talking about. Thereâs art out there that needs to be amplified. But itâs also an escape. You can be in your pajamas and choose to watch it and go, âMake me laugh, entertain me.â Thatâs how I remember Johnny Carson when I was growing up.
Back in the day people used to joke that âTonightâ was often the backdrop for conception.
So thatâs a third reason. Weâre increasing the population of Earth.
When I started, everything had to be tickety-boo. But as the years have gone on, Iâm more open to things falling down and dealing with that in the moment.
â Jimmy Fallon
How have you grown as an interviewer?
When I first started, I was so nervous. I kept going so fast in my interviews, and theyâd be like, âWeâve got two more minutes left,â and Iâd be like, âI already asked all my questions.â Now itâs the opposite. Iâm in a real conversation, asking questions I probably wouldnât have back then. I listen to [Marc] Maron, Howard Stern, all these long [podcast] interviews, and I think itâd be great to talk to somebody a lot longer.
David Letterman is also doing long-form interviews with his Netflix shows. I remember when he hosted âLate Night,â there was this sense of spontaneity and anarchy about the show. But in the L.A. Times recently, critic Robert Lloyd tsk–ed that late night has become a promotional mill. How do you avoid that label ?
But did Lettermanâs show change and become more of that promotion [mill]?
Once he started âThe Late Show,â sure. It was a time change and he had a bigger platform. But does âTonightâ always have to be a shiny â
Thereâs always a gloss on âThe Tonight Show.â I do think I get away with it in sketches. You never know when Iâm going to do a song or a sketch, and thatâs normal. We try to mix it up. I think I try to keep it spontaneous, in that anything could happen.
Does it take 10 years to get to where you are now with âTonightâ?
It does. The only thing that can get you there is age and time, and to keep going. You canât do it in a week; it doesnât happen fast. This is what happens when you get to this age, youâre like, âWe earned this, we built all this, we built a great machine here, itâs really fun,â and thereâs no other way to get there but experience.
Are there any guests you regret having on?
No. Every day is a different experience. Sometimes you have great shows, and sometimes youâre like, âThat was really hard.â Either way, you canât get too excited or too depressed because you have another show tomorrow and another show tomorrow â and another show tomorrow.