Last month, Jon Stewart announced that he would be departing from The Daily Show where he had been host since 1999. While many speculated as to who would be Stewart’s successor, today those rumors will be put to rest, as South African comedian Trevor Noah will be officially announced as the new man behind the desk of Comedy Central’s popular news satire show.
No-one can replace Jon Stewart. But together with the amazing team at The Daily Show, we will continue to make this the best damn news show!
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) March 30, 2015
The 31-year-old funny man broke the news in a phone interview yesterday with the New York Times, as he was traveling in Dubai for a stop on his comedy tour.
“You don’t believe it for the first few hours,” Mr. Noah said of learning about his new job. “You need a stiff drink, and then unfortunately you’re in a place where you can’t really get alcohol.”
Noah isn’t the only one who’s excited. Jon Stewart also expressed his approval.
“I’m thrilled for the show and for Trevor,” Mr. Stewart said in a statement. “He’s a tremendous comic and talent that we’ve loved working with.” Mr. Stewart added that he “may rejoin as a correspondent just to be a part of it!!!”
The young comedian is likely no stranger to Daily Show diehards. Noah has appeared on the show as a correspondent, first showing his face in December to play a game of “spot the Africa” with John Stewart. Those unfamiliar with Noah should know that in South Africa, he has had his own talk show, been a popular radio host, and starred in educational programs early in his career. Recently, he has focused more on comedy, touring worldwide and appearing on The Late Show With David Letterman. If you’re skeptical as to how funny he is, rest assured that he has Chris Rock’s full approval.
Thank you president Obama pic.twitter.com/PgFJCCyRTa — Chris Rock (@chrisrock) March 30, 2015
While Stewart hasn’t announced a concrete end date to his Daily Show run, he is expected to leave sometime between July and the end of this year.
UPDATE: Comedy Central has officially announced Trevor Noah as John Stewart’s successor as host of The Daily Show.
“Trevor Noah is an enormous talent. He has an insightful and unique point of view, and most importantly, is wickedly funny,” said Michele Ganeless, president of Comedy Central in a statement. “For the next host of ‘The Daily Show,’ we set out to find a fresh voice who can speak to our audience with a keen take on the events of the day, and we found that in Trevor. He has a huge international following and is poised to explode here in America, and we are thrilled to have him join Comedy Central.”
The statement did not reveal when Noah’s Daily Show would be premiering.
[h/t New York Times]
