Taylor Tomlinson Ending ‘After Midnight’ in Latest Blow to Late Night

I was already a bit nervous when After Midnight was announced as the replacement for James Corden’s Late Late Show. The death of late-night talk shows is inevitable. I’m not naive, I just thought it might take a little longer. So, a talk show getting replaced with an improv game show felt like a bad sign. However, the talent behind it was undeniable. Taylor Tomlinson is one of the funniest comics working. The writing team was stacked with late-night vets. It seemed like a surefire hit and was doing well as far as I could tell. But, it will be coming to an end regardless.

CBS was behind After Midnight. They rolled it out with much fanfare, playing into the fact that Stephen Colbert was a Producer to entice audiences to keep their TVs on after he was done. Hell, the show was even renewed for a third season. But, that season will not come to fruition. CBS has announced that the show will end following this upcoming season. The last episodes will air in June, and then Tomlinson, who has been fantastic in hosting the show, will return to stand-up comedy, which is why the show is ending.

“Hosting After Midnight has genuinely been the experience of a lifetime, and I’ll be forever grateful for the opportunity to be part of this incredible journey. Though it was an extremely tough decision, I knew I had to return to my first passion and return to stand-up touring full-time.” Tomlinson explained via statement. “I appreciate CBS, [executive producer] Stephen Colbert, the producers, and the entire After Midnight staff and crew for all the love, support, and unforgettable memories.”

Colbert also issued a statement regretting the decision but praising Tomlinson. “I want to thank CBS for their constant support and invaluable partnership on After Midnight, and the whole staff for their amazing dedication,” he noted. “While we were excited and grateful for our third season to start in the fall, we respect Taylor’s decision to return to stand-up full-time.” It stinks that, presumably, a whole crew of people who thought they would have another season of work won’t. However, that isn’t entirely Tomlinson’s fault.

If the show was renewed for a third season, there’s more than a chance CBS could have hired another host to finish the show’s run. They could even pick more than one host. This is Paramount, the same parent company that cycled through Daily Show hosts instead of picking one. Instead, the network will let the show end and replace it with… nothing. The timeslot once held by the likes of David Letterman and Craig Ferguson (that was a good show!) will be empty until it is filled with reruns of Blind Date or Shamwow infomercials or something. Again, inevitable, but depressing nonetheless.