Roy Wood Jr. Exits ‘Daily Show’ as Search for Host Continues
Roy Wood Jr. will exit The Daily Show as it continues to search for a host to replace Trevor Noah
variety.com
NPR: Roy Wood Jr. says he's leaving 'The Daily Show' but he doesn't hold a grudge
Comic Roy Wood Jr. says he will not return to his position as a correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show when the show resumes new episodes later this month, ending a job he first started eight years ago.
The reason: Since he hasn't been offered the job as permanent host of the show, Wood wants some time to figure out his next act.
"I can't come up with what Plan B is while still working with Plan A," says Wood, who has decided he doesn't want to be on The Daily Show as a correspondent waiting for someone else to take the top job. "The job of correspondent...it's not really one where you can juggle multiple things. [And] I think eight years is a good run."
When asked about Wood's departure and the issues surrounding his decision, a spokesperson for The Daily Show sent a brief statement: "Roy Wood Jr. is a comedic genius and beloved teammate. His insights and hilarity helped us make sense of the 2016 election, the pandemic, and countless hours of Fox News. We thank him for his time with us and can't wait to see what he does next."
Wood says he doesn't know if his name is under consideration for the top job and he has already informed Comedy Central of his intention not to return. ("What could they really say?" he adds when asked how the cable channel responded. [They're] not going to give me the job just to keep me.") But if Comedy Central offered him the permanent host job now, the comic says he would still consider it.
Variety broke news in August that Minhaj, who guest hosted the show the week of Feb. 27, was a leading candidate for the job, according to several unnamed sources. Other comics who had guest hosted the show, like Chelsea Handler and Sarah Silverman, were also rumored to be in contention.
But Variety reported last month that Comedy Central "is going back to square one" in its search for a permanent host after The New Yorker published a story revealing Minhaj had fabricated and exaggerated autobiographical stories in his standup specials, including incidents involving islamophobia
Wood says the Variety story about Minhaj — which Comedy Central has not publicly confirmed — made him think more about his future on the show. And he still thinks Minhaj is a strong candidate for the job, despite the New Yorker story.
He stresses that he doesn't hold a grudge against Comedy Central, which he credits for working with him on several non-Daily Show projects, including the standup specials, two podcasts, a filmed pilot for a TV series that never aired and three scripts they bought but never produced.
But late night TV has seen a recent exodus of non-white stars — from Desus and Mero and Ziwe to Trevor Noah himself. And Wood remains concerned that, as the genre contracts, people of color are stuck in a "last hired, first fired" position.
"I don't believe diversity to be the paramount priority [anymore]," Wood says.
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