Just as quickly as the sad, sad news arrived last month that Jon Stewart had chosen to step down as host of The Daily Show, so began the profoundly difficult task of settling on a replacement to carry on his legacy. Top-tenured choices Jason Jones and Samantha Bee both took themselves out of the running to commit to programs at TBS, and possible sleeper candidate Jessica Williams declined interest, describing herself as “under-qualified” on Twitter, leaving the active pool of TDS correspondents to choose from dwindling by the minute.
Now, in an incredibly surprising move, Comedy Central has formally announced their decision to replace Stewart with relatively new correspondent Trevor Noah—the thirty-one-year-old South African comedian who joined The Daily Show this last December. While Noah has only made three appearances in his few months with the show, those segments appear to have been sufficiently convincing for network execs, as they have given him their blessing. Channel president Michele Ganeless noted, “He brings such a unique worldview and a deep understanding of human nature, which makes his comedy so insightful. He’s truly a student of the world.”
Stewart himself warmly welcomed his successor, and went as far as to say that he “may rejoin as a correspondent just to be a part of it!!!,” three exclamation points and all. And Noah himself cited Stewart’s spot-on blessing, explaining, “He told me, ‘I was where you were when I took over the show. Nobody knew me. I was just starting out, finding my voice, and that’s when I was handed this seat.’”
The dates for the succession of power are still undecided, but are loosely planned for end of 2015, beginning of 2016. Soak in all the Moments of Zen while you still can.
(via The New York Times)
