What did Jay Leno say to John Oliver? Late night host says comedy 'can't be for everyone'

John Oliver is refusing to take some comedic advice from Jay Leno.

The Last Week Tonight host, 48, slammed Leno, 75, for scrutinizing fellow late-night TV hosts, for alienating “half an audience” with their political humor. Leno's comments came on the heels of CBS axing Stephen Colbert's The Late Show.

In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter (THR), John Oliver, whose show boasts 30 Primetime Emmys since it debuted on HBO 12 seasons ago in 2014, said:

“I’m going to take a hard pass on taking comedic advice from Jay Leno. Comedy can’t be for everyone. It’s inherently subjective.”

John Oliver slams Jay Leno for saying no one wants to hear a "lecture" about politics: Read more

During his interview with THR that came out on Tuesday, August 5, John Oliver said that it was “completely legitimate" for his fellow comedians to try and appeal to a wider audience, and to do the complete opposite:

“I guess I don’t think it’s a question of what you should do because I don’t think comedy is prescriptive in that way,” he explained. “It’s just what people want. I think our show clearly comes from a point of view, but most of those long stories we do are not party political.”

John Oliver, who formerly worked as a correspondent for The Daily Show, continued:

“They’re about systemic issues. Our last few shows were about gang databases, AI slop, juvenile justice, med spas, air traffic control. I’m not saying that these don’t have a point of view in them. Of course they do. But I hope a lot of them actually reach across people’s political persuasions. You want people to at least be able to agree on the problem, even if you disagree on what the solution to it is.”

For context, Jay Leno was allegedly slamming the current late-night hosts for being too Democratic during a conversation with the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation CEO David Trulio on July 22:

'I don't think anybody wants to hear a lecture...Why shoot for just half an audience? Why not try to get the whole? I like to bring people into the big picture,' Jay explained. 'I don't understand why you would alienate one particular group, you know, or just don't do it at all. I'm not saying you have to throw your support or whatever, but just do what's funny.'

The Daily Mail has reported that John Oliver, who became an American citizen in 2019, joined forces with Jon Stewart, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Andy Cohen, and Anderson Cooper on The Late Show to stand up for their friend, Colbert, after news that his show was getting canceled broke out.

'As soon as the news broke, we were all checking in with Stephen,' Oliver recalled. 'He came up with the idea and asked us to come, and of course we're all going to do it. You want to be able to support him and his staff in a horrible, horrible time.'

He called the debacle incredibly sad for comedy,' adding:

'We are fortunate enough to be in a very different situation than network commercial TV, so those corporate pressures are not comparable, and we have no pressures from advertisers.'

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John and Seth Meyers are reportedly set to make a pit stop in Manhattan's Upper West Side on September 21 as they resume their five-night stand at the Beacon Theatre. As for Jay Leno, he will be hosting his own stand-up comedy show this weekend at the Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, CA.

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