John Mulaney Reveals He Was Asked to Host The Daily Show After Jon Stewart

John Mulaney released a new special on Netflix earlier this week titled Baby J, and the comedian has been sharing some interesting stories about his career during the press tour. Mulaney recently appeared on Doug Herzog and Jen Chaney’s Basic! podcast (via Variety). Herzog used to be the president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group, which oversaw Comedy Central during the time Jon Stewart was getting ready to leave The Daily Show in 2015. Herzog brought up a conversation Mulaney had with the then-president of Comedy Central, Kent Alterman. It was revealed that Mulaney was asked to host The Daily Show after Stewart. Ultimately, the role ended up going to Trevor Noah, who hosted the show up until last year.  “I think we were floating your interest in that and you were very lukewarm as I remember,” Herzog recalled.

“It was shortly after the SNL 40th anniversary. I had a sitcom on Fox. They aired all 13 [episodes] but it was canceled. It didn’t do good numbers,” Mulaney explained. “I remember going to dinner with Kent. I was extremely flattered that y’all were asking me about it. I sensed they would be big shoes to fill.” He continued, “I think I also was gun shy from putting myself out there at that moment after the Fox run and I sensed all eyes would be on whoever came after Mr. Stewart… It wasn’t the right thing at the moment. I remember saying to Kent, ‘I wish it was five years from now.’ He went, ‘Yeah, but it’s not.’ Kent had a great tone of, ‘I hear you. I’ll hear out anything you have to say, but it’s now and we’re asking you about it. We can’t talk hypothetically for that long at this dinner, John.’”

Who Is Currently Hosting The Daily Show?

As of last year, The Daily Show has been hosted by various gusts hosts including Wanda Sykes, Leslie Jones, Hasan Minhaj, Sarah Silverman, John Leguizamo, Kal Penn, and more. A recent episode hosted by comedian Roy Wood Jr. featured a visit from the Ghost of Daily Show Past. Stewart showed up to talk about Donald Trump’s arraignment while dressed as Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

“I always tell people if you truly want to learn about America, talk to Black women,” Noah shared as he was saying goodbye to The Daily Show. “Because unlike everybody else Black women can’t afford to fuck around and find out. Black people understand how hard it is when things go bad.”

Are you hoping The Daily Show will get a permanent host? Could you imagine John Mulaney in the role? Tell us in the comments!