The sun is setting on The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore. Comedy Central is canceling the late-night panel talk show after less than two years on the air, the network announced on Monday, August 15.
The series, hosted by Daily Show alum Larry Wilmore, airs its final episode on Thursday, August 18. It launched in January 2015, picking up the time slot that opened up after Stephen Colbert’s final episode of The Colbert Report aired in December 2014. The Nightly Show was created by Jon Stewart, who said goodbye as host of The Daily Show in August 2015.
“I’m really grateful to Comedy Central, Jon Stewart and our fans to have had this opportunity, but I’m also saddened and surprised we won’t be covering this crazy election, or ‘The Unblackening,’ as we’ve coined it,” Wilmore, 54, said in a statement. “And keeping it 100, I guess I hadn’t counted on ‘The Unblackening’ happening to my time slot as well.”
Comedy Central brass released a statement praising Wilmore and his team for their work: “We thank Larry and The Nightly Show staff for their tireless efforts across the past two years and the conversations the show generated by addressing social issues of great importance to the country, always challenging people’s attitudes, perceptions and bias.”
Wilmore is a successful TV producer, having created The Bernie Mac Show. Prior to hosting The Nightly Show, he was known to TV audiences for his appearances as the Daily Show’s “senior black correspondent,” along with recurring roles on The Office and Happy Endings.
Chris Hardwick’s comedic game show @midnight will replace The Nightly Show at 11:30 p.m. until a permanent replacement is found.
Tell Us: Will you miss The Nightly Show? And who would you like to see as host of a show that replaces it?
The Nightly Show’s series finale airs on Comedy Central Thursday, August 18, at 11:30 p.m. ET.
