The Late Shift (1996) on Netflix
Johnny Carson has hosted The Tonight Show since 1962. Jay Leno, his permanent guest host, and David Letterman, whose show follows Carson's, both want the job.
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- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.7/104,067 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Trailer
Plot summary
In 1991, television executives responsible for NBC's late-night programming anticipate the day a new host will be needed for The Tonight Show, which Johnny Carson has hosted since 1962. Carson's permanent guest host, Jay Leno, and David Letterman, whose own show follows Carson's each night, both want the job. Executives privately think that Leno might be more popular with audiences and easier for the network to control, and they believe their contract with Letterman prevents him from leaving. Leno's manager, Helen Kushnick, handles his negotiations.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Late Shift (1996)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- David Letterman called the film "the biggest waste of film since my wedding photos" and likened John Michael Higgins, the actor who played him, to a "circus chimp" and a "budding psychotic." After Higgins accepted a booking on Letterman's show, Letterman let the show run long to keep him from appearing, with a promised rescheduling that never came.
- Kushnick filed a $30 million libel lawsuit against Bill Carter, author of the book the HBO film was based on, over her claim that she planted a story about Carson's retirement in the New York Post. The case was noted in the film's epilogue and settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.
- Real-life CBS executive Rod Perth has a brief cameo in the film, playing the man Howard Stringer mistakes for Perth in the CAA lobby, and the filmmakers made comic use of his extraordinary physical resemblance to Ed Begley Jr., the actor cast as him.
