Roy Wood Jr. Exits ‘Daily Show’ as Search for Host Continues

variety.com:

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Roy Wood Jr., a longtime contributor to Comedy Central‘s “Daily Show,” will not return to the late-night program when it returns to production, the latest wrinkle to develop at the long-running show as executives continue to hunt for a successor to Trevor Noah. “I can’t come up with Plan B is while still working with Plan A,” the comedian told NPR, noting he doesn’t want to continue as one of the show’s cadre of correspondents while someone else is being considered for the top role. “The job of correspondent…it’s not really one where you can juggle multiple things. [And] I think eight years is a good run,” he said.

His exit spotlights complications at the venerable program as Comedy Central broadens its search for a new lead figure. Noah abruptly announced his exit in late 2022 in front of a live audience that had come to see a the taping of a new episode.

Comedy Central has relied on guest hosts ever since — until the show had to go dark due to the Hollywood writers strike. The Paramount Global network had settled on Hasan Minhaj as a leading candidate for the job, but then appears to have reversed its decision after that comic — who had guest hosted along with candidates such as Chelsea Handler, Marlon Wayans, Kal Penn and Sarah Silverman — after a New Yorker report described ways in which Minhaj had embellished some of his autobiographical comedy routines. “Daily Show” has been through similar tumult in the past.