Monday’s Tonight Show had the smallest TV audience ever for an original episode of the show, according to early reviews. Jimmy Fallon attracted just 947,000 viewers last night.
Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show” on CBS won the night with 2.03 million viewers, according to Nielsen’s fast national Live + Same Day numbers. “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” ABC came in second among nightly television programs, with 1.67 million viewers in total.
The numbers for each of these programs are subject to adjustment when the final numbers are counted. They are expected to be available on Wednesday.
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Although this specific historical data from Nielsen dates back only to 1986, it is safe to say that Johnny Carson has always attracted more than a million viewers. They are very different ages. (Carson performed “The Tonight Show” from 1962 to 1992. Jay Leno took over in 92.)
The previous low of an original episode of the “Tonight Show” came on September 25, 2020, when Fallon reached 992,000 viewers in total after a Stanley Cup Finals game. The start of this episode was slightly delayed due to live hockey coverage.
Prior to the post-hockey episode, the program’s low record came from the August 18, 2020 episode, when Jimmy attracted 1 million viewers in total.
Yes, it was a difficult time for Fallon – especially in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
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Fallon used to be the king of the dawn, but Colbert overtook him for the first time in mid-November 2018. The former “Colbert Report” student won that season.
On Monday, Fallon welcomed guests Bill Burr, Rashida Jones and musical guest Old Dominion. The segments included “Life Coach” with Burr and Fallon’s solo gag “Go On, Git”.
Last night, Colbert interviewed Chris Rock and performed a performance by singer Joss Stone. In “Kimmel”, the guests were “This Is Us Star” Milo Ventimiglia and Jake Tapper from CNN, with Queen Naija as a musical guest.
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Readers can watch Fallon’s monologue on Monday below. Initially, Fallon spoke to President Trump, being permanently banned from Twitter and other social media platforms.
Find last night’s prime time reviews here. ABC won that part of the day.