Out with the old, in with the new. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
NBC hasn't gotten a ton right in the past few years. But it looks like -- knock wood -- they've managed to solve one of the biggest, knottiest dilemmas of all: how to engineer a generational transition at "The Tonight Show" without igniting a war like the one that happened four years ago.
The network has confirmed the rumor that's been simmering for weeks that Jimmy Fallon will replace Jay Leno as host of "Tonight" starting in 2014. The change will take place in February, following the conclusion of the Winter Olympics. NBC will use its broadcasts of the Games to promote both Leno's farewell and Fallon's debut.
Leno tells The New York Times's Bill Carter that the timing was his idea. Earlier reports had speculated that the switch would occur in September, for the start of the fall TV season.
The fact that Leno is involved at all is great news for NBC, which has been walking on eggshells for weeks. Premature leaks of the network's plans clearly rankled Leno, who had never expressed a desire to retire, and who used his platform to ridicule the network. But after a conciliatory visit from NBC Universal CEO Steve Burke -- and after a cordial overture from Fallon himself, in the form of a humorous joint video -- Leno got on board with the succession, even though it meant walking away seven months before his contract was set to expire.
It's a canny move for Leno, considering the alternative was never really that attractive to him. When Leno made a power play to reclaim "Tonight" from Conan O'Brien in 2010, he succeeded, but the personal cost was high. His negative public perception, as measured by Q Scores, spiked after the tussle, though it has subsided somewhat.
Meanwhile, the rewards of being No. 1 at 11:35 p.m. aren't as great as they once were, with Leno having agreed to a $5 million-dollar reduction to his $20 million salary last August. Fallon, on the other hand, is in line for a big pay bump, and is believed to be set to earn as much as $12 million, up from the $5 million he got to host "Late Night."
The big question has been resolved, but there remain plenty of small questions to answer. Who will take over "Late Night"? (Seth Meyers, host of "Saturday Night Live's" "Weekend Update" segment, appears to be the frontrunner as the favorite of NBC comedy impresario Lorne Michaels.) How will this affect the timing of David Letterman's retirement? (CBS stands to get a short-term ratings boost from putting Letterman up against the less-established Fallon, but it might be wiser to use the disruption to get its own transition under way.) And will Leno, who's 62, be content to stay retired, or will he make good on his half-joking threats to jump to Fox?
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