A Prime Time for Jay Leno at NBC
NBC Photo: Paul Drinkwater
A familiar face—the chin, especially—is joining NBC's prime-time lineup.
Capitalizing on rumors that Jay Leno isn't ready to hang up his Peacock feathers, the network has signed him to a new contract that will have him presiding over a Tonight Show-style show during the 10 p.m. hour on a nightly basis, E! News has confirmed.
Meaning, NBC Universal chief executive Jeff Zucker wasn't kidding when he said at a news conference today that NBC might be forced to rein in its prime-time programming hours after a disappointing fall season.
Securing Leno for the ER/Law & Order/many-a-canceled-drama slot kills multiple birds with one stone: It stops Leno from taking his late-night schtick—and his built-in audience—to a rival network at a time when NBC can ill afford to lose any viewers at any time, and it will likely save the network a pretty penny, cutting its number of fillable prime-time hours from 22 to 17.
The deal is expected to be announced Tuesday. Per the New York Times, Leno—who has been joking on a near weekly basis about being forced out at NBC next year—won't even have to change studios. His new show will be taped in Burbank, Calif., where the Tonight Show is currently based, while Conan O'Brien will move into new digs in Universal City when he takes over June 1.
Five-minute webisodes featuring O'Brien's eventual successor, Jimmy Fallon, start rolling out on NBC.com tonight.
The Big Picture
Oh, Snap! Prankster and TV pitchman Ashton Kutcher takes a shot at the paparazzi for a change
More PhotosMost Commented
- Twilight Rewind: Hot Dish From the Cast Last Year! (798)
- Bitch-Back! Breaking News—Johnny's a Hottie (651)
- Costars and Suits Give Robsten Their Blessings! (649)
- Blab Blab Blab: Is Twilight Sexist? (552)
- Truth, Lies & Ted: Twilight Special (478)
- Is New Moon Even Good? (444)
- Why Won't Sarah Palin Go Away? (437)
- Bitch-Back! What's Brad Got to Do With It? (426)
- Is Ugly Betty Ending? And Who Gets the Girl? (394)
- Ridiculous Twilight Hookups in an "All Taken" Cast (348)
Top 10 Stories
- New Moon Makes a Lot of Money (But Not Quite Batman Money)
- Jon (Plus Flowers) & Kate Reunite to Put Finishing Touches on Divorce
- New Moon Eclipses Dark Knight!
- Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray & More Continue Singing Oprah's Praises
- Michael Jackson's Doc Shipped Propofol From Vegas to L.A., Records Show
- Unleashed Fangirls Derail Justin Bieber Appearance
- Miley Cyrus' Tour Bus in Deadly Crash
- Good News for Miley: She's Officially Not a Racist
- New Moon's "Absolutely Freakish" Debut
- Snipes Appeals Overly Taxing Prison Sentence
Fashion Police
Green With Envy?Not quite, but we do give Kristen props for this shot of color during her New Moon press tour
More Photos
Latest Movie Reviews
Get Your E! News Now
22 Comments
-
Show the next 1 - 0 of 22 comments
Now loading...