Conan O'Brien's nightly Conan TBS talk show to end, but he'll host a weekly variety show on HBO Max
https://deadline.com/2020/11/conan-to-end-on-tbs-conan-obrien-weekly-variety-show-hbo-max-1234617122/
Conan's tenure as a late-night host is coming to an end after 28 years. His TBS late-night talk show, which launched 10 years ago this month on Nov. 8, 2010, will end in June 2021 after more than 1,400 episodes. The move comes despite TBS renewing Conan as a half-hour format starting in 2019 through 2022. Conan O'Brien launched his late-night career as host of Late Night in September 1993 through February 2009, moving to host The Tonight Show from June 2009 through January 2010, ending his relationship with NBC with an acrimonious breakup. “In 1993 Johnny Carson gave me the best advice of my career: ‘As soon as possible, get to a streaming platform.’ I’m thrilled that I get to continue doing whatever the hell it is I do on HBO Max, and I look forward to a free subscription,” joked Conan. Conan will host a weekly variety show that comes as part of an extended deal with WarnerMedia. Jeff Ross, Conan's longtime producer starting with Late Night, tells Deadline that he believes late-night shows are now “kind of dinosaurs in the business” and says that they were looking to do something different, as evidenced by this deal. “TBS and these linear cable networks, especially, are just like death. You know there’s no circulation, so you can’t do it forever," says Ross. "And (Conan) is ready for a change. We’ve got a lot of stuff going on between the podcast and the show and the digital business." Brett Weitz, general manager for TNT, TBS and truTV, adds: “28 years is a monumental achievement in late-night television. We’re incredibly proud of the groundbreaking work that Conan and his team have accomplished during the 10 years at TBS and are so glad that we will continue to have his presence on our air with the ‘Conan Without Borders’ specials. We celebrate his success and are glad to see it grow across our WarnerMedia family.”