Jon Stewart is back at the helm of The Daily Show, nine years after he departed the series and was replaced by Trevor Noah.
Following Noah’s departure in late 2022, the late night news comedy series began searching for a new host, and featured a rotation of different potential talent in the anchor’s seat. However, after a year of rotating guest hosts, the show went back to its major architect, Stewart.
Stewart sat behind the desk on Monday for his big return, and was met with a huge round of cheering and applause, as he joked, “Now where was I?”
Addressing his return, Stewart joked, “I have committed a lot of crimes, and from what I understand, talk show hosts are granted immunity.”
After touching on the Super Bowl, and poking fun at the right-wing conspiracy theories regarding Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, Stewart got down to the major topic of the night — the 2024 presidential election, and taking a closer look at President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
Stewart was clearly tapped for his experience with political theater, and the seasoned pro slipped right back into his old rhythm as he deftly handled and anchored the politically pointed episode with humor and gravitas in equal measure.
One of the episode’s highlights came when Stewart reached out to his news team correspondents — including Dulcé Sloan, who commented on the options Americans have to pick from when it comes to voting.
“This is just the same s**t all over again, it’s just a reboot. We need more than just the same show with an older but familiar face,” Sloan said, not-to-subtly mocking Stewarts return as host.
“You… you’re talking about the two candidates, right?” Stewart asked, sheepishly.
“Yeah! I mean, they already had this job,” she replied. “Now these old white dudes gotta come and reclaim it? Like, come on, sir. Go do something new. It’s so desperate. Like, let someone else run the show.”
“You’re talking about the election, right?” Stewart asked again.
“I said what I said,” Sloan shot back.
While Stewart has returned, the comic will only be hosting on Mondays. Members of the show’s news team will helm the ship the rest of the week — with Jordan Klepper returning to the series, and set to anchor for the next few days.
The Daily Show airs weeknights at 11 p.m. ET/PT on Comedy Central, and new episode will be available the next day on Paramount+.
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