With all late-night talk shows temporarily suspended due to the coronavirus, or COVID-19, Conan will be the first to come back with new episodes on March 30, shot remotely. The late-night show, hosted by comedian Conan O’Brien, airs on TBS Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m. The show started airing in 2010, and TBS has renewed the show through 2022. Initially a full-hour long, Conan was reformatted to a half-hour program in early 2019.
Just announced today, Conan will return to TBS Monday, March 30 with new shows, shot remotely on an iPhone. The production staff will work from home, and all guest interviews will be filmed via video chat. The show aims to protect the health and safety of their team, while still bringing entertainment and well-needed “silly distraction” to people stuck at home.
The show has been on a pre-scheduled hiatus since March 16. Commenting on the news with his usual humorous attitude, O’Brien said, “The quality of my work will not go down because technically that’s not possible.” While preparing new episodes of Conan, O’Brien has also released a special “Quarantine Edition” of his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend.
Living with the coronavirus has forced everyone into self-isolation for the public’s health. Because of this, people are depending on entertainment to bring enjoyment and distraction. While most news lately has been of closings and delays, Conan‘s return is a nice surprise, and hopefully more shows will follow suit.
