Paramount wants Jon Stewart back at Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” beyond the end of his current contract, a company insider told TheWrap, as questions emerge about the late-night host’s future under the company’s new ownership.
Semafor reported Sunday that Stewart and Paramount have yet to reach an extension beyond 2026, despite strong interest from the company in renewing his deal. Stewart’s current contract runs through December.
A Paramount insider stressed to TheWrap that the company wants Stewart back at “The Daily Show.”
The timing, however, is not necessarily unusual. Stewart did not extend his previous deal until November 2025, when Paramount announced he would continue hosting Monday nights through December 2026.
This time around, the question comes amid a changed landscape at Paramount and broader uncertainty surrounding the company’s late-night programming. CBS’ “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” ended in May after Paramount canceled the long-running late-night franchise.
Stewart remains a major part of Comedy Central’s strategy. “The Daily Show,” along with “South Park,” is a centerpiece of the network, according to the Paramount insider, who described Stewart as the show’s signature star.
The series posted its highest-rated second quarter among adults 18-49 since 2017 and its most-watched second quarter among total viewers since 2018, according to Nielsen data provided by Paramount. The show has also posted year-over-year growth across key social benchmarks and received three Emmy nominations this year.
Stewart hosts “The Daily Show” on Mondays and serves as an executive producer, while members of the show’s news team and correspondents rotate behind the desk Tuesdays through Thursdays. Those Tuesday-through-Thursday telecasts are up 66% year over year among adults 18-49, according to Paramount.
Stewart returned to “The Daily Show” in 2024, nearly nine years after ending his original 16-year run as host. He initially returned to host Monday nights through the 2024 election cycle before extending his stay through 2025 and, last November, through the end of 2026.
What happens after that remains unclear. Paramount, for its part, has made clear it wants Stewart to stay.
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