‘Late Late Show’ Names James Corden as Craig Ferguson’s Successor
Sorry, Norm Macdonald: British actor-comedian James Corden is officially replacing Craig Ferguson as host of CBS‘ Late Late Show. The network made the announcement on Monday, according to The Hollywood Reporter, with CBS entertainment chairman Nina Tassler calling Corden the “ultimate multi-hyphenate – a writer, creator and performer who is loved and respected in every medium he touches, including theater, comedy, music, film and television.”
Though he’s relatively obscure in the U.S., the 36-year-old Corden maintains a sizable presence in the U.K. His first major success came in 2007, as co-creator and star of the acclaimed TV comedy Gavin and Stacey. He’s since found a variety of disparate work – from hosting gigs (the sports-centric game show A League of Their Own) to TV writing and acting (the comedy-thriller BBC series The Wrong Mans) to roles in major films (2013’s Begin Again) to stage roles on Broadway (his Tony-winning performance in One Man, Two Guvnors) to voice acting.
Ferguson announced his Late Late Show departure back in April, with his final taping scheduled for an unspecified date in December. The comedian spent a decade hosting the show, which airs at 12:35 a.m. following David Letterman‘s Late Show. Of course, his late-night departure is only one piece of a massive late-night exodus: Stephen Colbert will be leaving his beloved Colbert Report at the end of 2014 to replace David Letterman on Late Show, while Larry Wilmore will fill Colbert’s Comedy Central void with his upcoming show, The Minority Report With Larry Wilmore. Meanwhile, Chelsea Handler aired her final installment of long-running E! series Chelsea Lately in late August.
At least there’s some stability in the talk show game: Conan O’Brien recently renewed his contract with TBS, securing Conan on airwaves until 2018.