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Late night TV to resume after writer’s strike reaches tentative deal

A tentative agreement between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and major media and entertainment companies will have an immediate impact on production of late night television shows.

Several late-night network shows will begin producing new episodes next week after the WGA authorized its members to return to work, bringing an end to a stoppage that lasted nearly 150 days.



The following shows will start airing new episodes on Monday, September 25:

  • “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC)
  • “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC)
  • “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS)
  • “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” (NBC)

Additionally, new episodes of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” will begin airing on HBO starting this upcoming Sunday, September 24, while new episodes of “Real Time with Bill Maher” will debut on Friday, September 22.

Paramount-owned Comedy Central will resume production again on Monday, October 16 after taping of the satirical news program was halted due to the writer’s strike. The show was utilizing a roster of guest hosts following the departure of Trevor Noah earlier in the year; the strike cut short Daily Show correspondent Dulcé Sloan’s guest host week.

Paramount is also working to launch a new program in the 12:35 a.m. time slot on its CBS broadcast network after “Late Late Show” host James Corden stepped down prior to the strike. A reboot of the Comedy Central program “At Midnight” is expected for that time slot, but CBS has not named a host for the show, and it was not clear if the strike altered plans to relaunch the program.

Broadcast and cable networks also have a prolonged strike involving SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors, that continues to impact scripted film and television production.

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is a nationally-recognized, award-winning journalist who has covered the business of media, technology, radio and television for more than 11 years. He is the publisher of The Desk and contributes to Know Techie, Digital Content Next and StreamTV Insider. He previously worked for Thomson Reuters, the Walt Disney Company, McNaughton Newspapers and Tribune Broadcasting.
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