Craig Ferguson Is Leaving 'Late Late Show'

Courtesy of CBS

It really is the end of a late-night era! Craig Ferguson announced on April 28 that he will be leaving ‘Late Late Night’ in December, after hosting the talk show for nearly a decade.

Fans said a tearful goodbye to late-night legend Jay Leno this year when he hosted his final episode of The Tonight Show on Feb. 6. Less than two months later, David Letterman announced that he would be retiring from the Late Show in 2015. And now, we’re losing another late-night staple — Craig Ferguson! Craig revealed the news to his audience during an April 28 taping of his show — so sad!

Craig Ferguson Leaving ‘Late Late Show’ — Host Stepping Down In December

Craig has definitely had a quieter career than some of his late-night counterparts, which is understandable considering his 12:35 a.m. time slot. Still, over the years, the quirky Scottish actor, writer and former rock musician has amassed a modest following of fans who appreciate his wacky observational humor and knack for storytelling.

Craig, who began hosting the Late Late Show in 2005, announced the sad news of his departure during a 5 p.m. PST taping of the April 28 episode.

Ever the jokester, Craig also poked fun of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin‘s recent separation in a statement issued by CBS: “CBS and I are not getting divorced, we are ‘consciously uncoupling,’ but we will still spend holidays together and share custody of the fake horse and robot skeleton, both of whom we love very much.”

Craig will host his final episode of the Late Late Show in December, when his contract with the network expires, our sister site Variety reports.

Craig Ferguson: Was CBS Trying To Replace Him?

Craig’s announcement comes approximately two weeks after CBS chose Stephen Colbert to replace David Letterman when the Late Show host retires in 2015. We’re sure Craig was upset about the network overlooking him for the gig, but a source tells HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY that not only did CBS not consider him a worthy replacement for Dave, but they also were planning to give Craig the boot from his own show!

“They have been secretly shopping his time slot and he got wind of it,” our source reveals.

Poor Craig! So what do YOU think, HollywoodLifers? Are you upset that Craig is leaving the Late Late Show? Do you think he should have been chosen to replace David Letterman on the Late Show, instead of Stephen Colbert? Let us know!

– Written by Tierney McAfee, Reporting by Russ Weakland

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Sorry to hear this. I am living in rural city in Asia and as a treat when I have good internet connection, I watch a You Tube of the latest antics of Craig, Jeff and Secretariat…not letterman of the other crap, just Craig.

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What is with the suits who crunch the numbers. First NBC picks Fallon to replace Leno, who eventually will be overtaken by Kimmel. Now, the CBS suits picks the boring, unfunny, and self centered Colbert to replace Letterman instead of the brilliant Craig Ferguson. I hope Ferguson comes back on another network late night show and slays all of the competition. You will be missed, Craig.

Sorry to say, CBS has made a BIG mistake! Although Stephen Colbert has his own brand of humor, which I find very funny, it is not the brand for Late Night. Craig Ferguson, who is just hilarious, would had been the obvious choice. But time will tell. Maybe Ferguson might return. When he told his audience the first time, that he was leaving, they fought to keep him on the air. Fans of Late Night are funny that way. :)

He showed how a talk show should be done, but no one else ever caught on. As he said, 10 years is a long time to do one thing in show business and it was inevitable that someone as creative as him would eventually move on. I’m hoping he goes back to movies and looks into Netflix original programming so the restraints are removed… and he becomes filthy rich in the process.

Craig Ferguson is undoubtedly the best comedian on tv. I guess he’s just too smart for dumbed down America to appreciate. CBS, what were you thinking?

Craig’s intelligent, quick-witted, natural, unscripted, unpretentious, and deserving better than CBS .
He’s an original. A cheap set with a skeleton, fake horse and no band – funny and brilliant. Stephen Colbert is crazy left and a bore. Won’ t be watching him. What a mistake. My husband and I both love Craig and will miss him. PS – saw Craig live doing stand-up in Pa and he was a natural hoot.

totally agree. I also saw him do stand-up, and he is fabulous.

CBS just didn’t get it. Craig Ferguson brought a timeslot that is usually dead in the water (especially on CBS) and gave it life. People tuned in because he was irreverent and witty and refused to play by the late night talk show game. It got to the point that I couldn’t watch any other talk show because I hated how scripted everything felt.
I really hope this is just him moving onwards and upwards, because otherwise I’d be pissed.
But then again, networks have systematically proven to not know WTF they’re doing when it comes to late night (sup, NBC).

I heard they are going to give his spot to Kim Kardasian

he was ever there?

Drew Carey will be the next host. He did a tryout for CBS recently and is doing comedy club gigs this Spring/Summer, including Zannies in Nashville, TN. That is my prediction.