The Story of Late Night

Through good times and bad, late-night hosts have earned America’s trust and kept the country in stitches by reflecting on pop culture, politics, and entertainment through their own comedic lens. But it’s not always a laughing matter behind the curtain. From broken promises and backroom deals, to primetime egos and all-out succession wars, this six-part docuseries tells The Story of Late Night in all its gritty truth. 

Featuring the funniest people on the planet—and behind-the-scenes stories from A-list Hollywood insiders—it’s a fascinating journey that charts the course of an art form that forever changed the face of television. 

From the godfather of late-night—Johnny Carson—to the birth of Saturday Night Live, and from the epic Leno-Letterman rivalry to the rise of cable that brought exciting new voices into the spotlight, this is late-night TV as you’ve never seen it. 

Premium archival footage takes viewers back in time, while interviews with the who’s who of stand-up reveal what it takes to get a seat behind the late-night desk. A companion series to the successful The History of Comedy franchise, we get up-close-and-personal with Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brien, Chelsea Handler, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah, James Corden, Samantha Bee, and many more.