James Corden is saying farewell to the Late Late Show.
The UK comedian announced he has signed a one-year extension for the CBS late night staple, which he has hosted since March 2015. With a tremble in his voice on Thursday’s episode, Corden shared the news with his viewers, saying the hosting gig has gone “beyond my wildest, wildest dreams” and picking an end date was “the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make.”
“I never want this show to overstay its welcome in any way, I always want to love making it,” he said. “And I really think in a year from now, that’ll be a good time to move on, and see what else might be out there.”
Corden told Deadline he will official exit the series ahead of next summer, when the 2022-2023 season concludes.
“It’s been it’s a really hard decision to leave because I’m so immensely proud of the show,” he told the outlet. “I’m thrilled to be extending [for a year]. I always thought I’d do it for five years and then leave and then I stayed on. I’ve really been thinking about it for a long time, thinking whether there might be one more adventure. … There’s still some other things that I feel I want to do. I’d like to try and write. There’s some [stories] I’d like to tell. I’d like to see if I’m capable of it. The fact that it’s terrifying is the reason to do it.”
Corden will have spent more than eight years hosting the Late Late Show by the time his contract expires. He secured the gig in 2014, after previous host Craig Ferguson departed after a nine-year run. Since then, Corden has introduced a number of popular segments to the series, such as Crosswalk Musical, Drop the Mic, and Carpool Karaoke. The latter has generated well over 2.5 billion views on YouTube, thanks to high-profile guests like Adele, Migos, One Direction, Nicki Minaj, and Michelle Obama.
Deadline reports CBS executives presented a number of deals to keep Corden on board. The offers reportedly included three- and two-year extensions, as well as a rolling one-year deal.
“Seven years ago, James Corden came to the U.S. and took television by storm, with huge creative and comedic swings that resonated in a big way with viewers on-air and online,” CBS president and CEO George Cheeks said. He added, “In my two years at CBS, I’ve had the privilege to see James’ creative genius up close and experience his valuable partnership with CBS, both as a performer and a producer. We wish he could stay longer, but we are very proud he made CBS his American home and that this partnership will extend one more season on The Late Late Show.”
It’s unclear if CBS has started searching for Corden’s replacement.
