Larry Wilmore Talks Best Worst Time To Debut Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show

Larry Wilmore will graduate from his role as “Senior Black Correspondent” on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” to anchor his own show, “The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore.” The new late night roundtable talk show will move into the 11:30 p.m. slot “The Colbert Report” had occupied for nine years before Stephen Colbert left to CBS to take over their late night format.

While he played a role on “Daily Show” with more aloof incredulity, on “The Nightly Show” Wilmore will share other sides of his personality and voice. He recently spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the show’s premiere happening at a “better worse time” and his rise to fame. Here are some highlights:

On the audience knowing him

“My joke is that three black people watch The Daily Show at any given time. So if I’m watching it, that counts, and there’s only two left. It’s a silly joke, but you know, different types of comedy reach different cultures. I get recognized by some people in my community, but not a lot. In fact, they would say, “What do you do?” And I would say, “Well, I did The Bernie Mac Show.” And they would say, “Oh, really? Well, do you know so-in-so?” And I’d say, “Yeah, I hired them. I was the boss!” They don’t believe it. It’s like, “Did you meet Bernie?” What are you talking about? Do you understand how show business works? Obviously not!”

On The Daily Show having a mostly white audience

“I don’t know if I’d say white. I think it’s current-event-news people. I’m being facetious, because I know there are a lot of people of color who like those kinds of things, but my other joke about black people is that we don’t have time for irony. You gotta give us the joke straight-forward. It’s like, ‘I gotta go to work. I gotta feed my kids. I’m tired. I don’t have time for irony. Just give me the joke.’ [Laughs]”

On show’s premiere on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

“Yeah, well, one of the first bits I did on The Daily Show was that I felt that to really make Martin Luther King Day equal, it would be just another holiday: It would be about mattress sales and that kind of stuff. I guess it was symbolic. The Nightly Show started [with the title] The Minority Report, and it seemed appropriate to start on Martin Luther King Day. I had my first joke already written: ‘Yeah, I gotta work. I know!‘”

On the show’s structure

“The first part of the show will be me doing my thing, like Jon [Stewart] or Stephen [Colbert] does: weighing in on what’s going on. And then we’ll open it up to a panel format. We’re still working out the second and third act. There’s going to be a lot of people on the show. I really love having conversations and deconstructing things. I don’t mind not having a laugh every second. Sometimes things deserve a little more discussion, and then you can have some fun after that.”

On playing a character versus being himself

“On The Daily Show, I am playing a character, with the senior black correspondent. But on the new show? Not the way Stephen Colbert does. That would be exhausting. It’s just the TV version of yourself. Like if you talk to Jon [Stewart], he’s not that amplified. He’s very low-key, kinda sly.”

The Nightly Show will provide viewers with Larry Wilmore’s distinct point of view and comedic take on current events and pop culture. Hosted by Wilmore, the series will feature a diverse panel of voices, providing a perspective largely missing in the late night television landscape.

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Larry Wilmore Talks Best Worst Time To Debut Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show