top of page

Jimmy Fallon to replace Leno

By Christine Petralia

Image courtesy of Life and Style Weekly

My take on Fallon taking over for Leno



April 5, 2013



Ever since the rumors started months, weeks ago, I have given this a lot of thought. I have literally watched every single episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon since he started, including every webisode that aired the few months before his premiere. (Yes Fal Pals, if you are a true Fal Pal, you would have known that). And I do love him and his show very much, to the point where when my boyfriend questioned me about where Jimmy was born, I quickly answered without hesitation that he was born in Brooklyn but grew up in Saugerties, New York. I can spit out any tidbit fact about Jimmy. I have the picture of the first time I met him sitting on my desk at work. I don’t even have my boyfriend’s picture on my desk. This is how much of a fan I am. Which is why it pains me to say this next sentence. Jimmy is not seasoned enough to take over for Leno. I know, I KNOW, I KNOW. Please don’t hate on me.




I base the statement on the fact that Jimmy has only had a talk show for four years, approximately 800-plus episodes. Don’t get me wrong, in that four years, he has definitely changed the face of late night television, complete with a huge Internet following. He constantly adds exclusive web content, one of my favorites was the interactive YouTube tour of the studios and his office. His sketches are so extreme, they are productions in themselves, including but not limited to The Jersey Floor, The Real Housewives of Late Night and Downton Sixby. And I love them all. I love his Robert Pattison and Justin Bieber impressions. I love when Justin Timberlake comes on and does the History of Rap. In fact, I love that he had Timberlake on for an entire week AND called it ‘Timberweek.’ I love that he calls Lady Gaga, Lady Ga-Ga. And I loved the ‘Grandma Got Ran Over By a Reindeer’ interaction he did with Higgins last December. “Did you hear about my grandma?” “No, what?”



But is he ready for the 11:37 p.m. timeslot on NBC? I just don’t think so. He needs a few more years. He still stumbles over his words during certain interviews. He’s great with his celebrity friends, but people he’s clearly just met backstage or only a few times, he stumbles and relies on his cards too much. This is a skill that only gets better with time, as when he started his first few months were rough. I have his entire first week on DVD, they were hard to watch. But he got better. He can now handle Robert De Niro, but he still blushes at the pretty ladies. The Roots help with their sexy riffs to break the tension at times.




Maybe all that is part of his charm. I know I like it when he can’t get through some jokes and laughs with Higgins or ?uestlove. I like when he plays beer pong with Betty White or wine pong with Kathy Lee. These are all the things I love about him, but is that enough to make it in the 11:37 p.m. time slot? I’m not sure. That time slot is for the older folk, will they appreciate Stephen Colbert singing “Friday” because he lost a bet with Jimmy, his BFF for six months? Will they understand ‘hashtags?’ Or even the shows that Jimmy parodies? Maybe they will.



I’m rooting for Jimmy to do well. I will never wish him to fail, I just don’t want him to fail. Who knows, maybe a different audience at 11:37 p.m. for him will only drive up the ratings. I know I’m still going to watch (or rather DVR) every night. I just hope that I can still easily get tickets to see him live. And I thank the Lord that he is not moving to California. I would have been devastated and would have booked a trip every six months or so to see him. I’m not kidding, I probably would have.




As far as who will take over for Late Night at 12:37 a.m., I have three contenders. The first is the rumors I’ve heard that Seth Meyers from SNL will get it. I could see that. He’s a good writer, and as evidenced from Jimmy’s success, he’ll make it over time. He could take some getting used to, but I would watch every once in a while.



The second is a theory I worked out a few weeks ago and it’s probably a long shot, Justin Timberlake. Hear me out. I know that Jimmy and Justin are friends. Jimmy did take a week off to attend Justin’s wedding. So, it was only natural for Justin to spend a week on Jimmy’s show, doing sketches and performing. After all, he was promoting an album. However, he is a fan favorite on SNL and kills it every time he’s on. In addition, he did kill it with Jimmy. I think that that week was a sort of audition for Lorne Michaels to see if Justin could hold his own on a talk show. And an audition for himself to see if he could get used to working every day, essentially a 10a-7p job, having to be on target every night. I know Justin is touring and has tried the movie thing (which he’s really not good at), but why not try the TV thing (which he is good at)? Plus, I’ve heard that at some point he’s looking to have kids with Jessica Biel, so why not have that steady job in one location? She can still be off making her movies, while he does the late night talk show? I could totally see it.




The third is something I came up with when I was drunk. Tina Fey. I heard that since 30 Rock ended, she is in talks with NBC for another show. I just don’t know in what capacity, whether she’d just produce and write, or star in it. So why not try a woman in that time slot? She’d be the first on network television to do it. Plus she’d kill it like Jimmy (or Seth). Though, I don’t know if she’d do it, as she did SNL for a long time and just wrapped up 30 Rock.



I’m curious to see who they pick to replace Jimmy. But who knows, maybe Leno will stay where he is as he did years ago with the Conan debacle and Jimmy will stay where he is. Either way, I love the way late night TV is changing and can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

Congrats Jimmy!



Check out the links below for my own Jimmy Fallon experiences.

Read as I head into the city for the first time to meet Jimmy Fallon at the Barnes and Noble in Union Square.

Read as I head back into the city and meet my idol Jimmy Fallon, again, at the Barnes and Noble in Union Square.

bottom of page