NBC
Andrés du Bouchet has been putting words in Conan O’Brien’s mouth as a writer on Conan, The Tonight Show, and Late Night for seven years, but on his Twitter account Thursday night, he let his own voice be heard while weighing in on the state of comedy. And to put it succinctly, du Bouchet isn’t happy.
Here are the relevant, NSFW-language filled tweets:
Comedy in 2015 needs a severe motherfucking shakeup. No celebrities, no parodies, no pranks, no mash-ups or hashtag wars. I’m fat.
— Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
@dubouchet and shove your lip-synching up your ass. — Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
Prom King Comedy. That’s what I call all this shit. You’ve let the popular kids appropriate the very art form that helped you deal. Fuck.
— Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
None of the funniest stuff ever involved celebrity cameos. — Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
As is the case with almost all great rants, du Bouchet soon dialed things back a little bit after some time had passed.
Once again I’m a bonehead for tweeting as a fan of comedy instead of as a guy who earns a living doing it.
— Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
@guybranum thanks but now comes the inevitable dressing down at work for criticizing other talk shows! — Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
Before tweeting out one more comment about late night…
@dubouchet add games and lip synching and nostalgia and karaoke to this list.
— Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
Which was followed by an apology.
Sorry for being a bloviating elitist windbag last night. I know tons of talented people are making the stuff I enjoy shitting all over.
— Andrés du Bouchet (@dubouchet) April 17, 2015
Now, is du Bouchet right? Does comedy need a “severe expletive deleted shakeup” right now?
![[avatar]](http://p.uproxxcdn.com/photo/57540/thumb)
Soooooooo…if this in an article about a former Conan writer…why is there a pic of Jimmy Fallon attached?
Because Fallon represents everything he’s talking about. Just a hunch.
Cuuuuzzzzzzzz he’s talking about Jimmy Fallon. Uh doy.
yeah! NO DOY!
He sounds jealous people because people luv tha Jimmy’s. Young show young audience. Cables dead
He’s jealous of jimmy? Cause people love jimmy? What? Uneducated idiots who also in the same sentence love justin bieber too? Or the same idiots who think its ok for a cop to kill a guy over a tail light incident?
You look at George carlin (RIP) Jon Stewart, stephen colbert… they don’t need cameo’s by celebs to make them some of the best comedic geniuses of our time. People tune in to jimmy because he is going to have a large mashup of celebs on. I can honestly say, I’ve never watched him aside from people’s favorite parts of the show that blasts the internet.. and then I watch them and go… MEH..
Definitely on board with some of this. The lip synching and nostalgia mostly. Our constant longing from the past to escape our shitty present piled on to our evergrowing fear of the future. Time is getting blurry. Paul F. Tompkins and Scott Aukerman touched tastefully on the nostalgia bandwagon on No You Shut Up with the Ski Lodge High, the saved by the bell reunion, living in a moment, rather than in THE moment. We need to “move the island,” as a society, so to speak.
EDIT:That meant to be “Our constant longing FOR the past…” forgiveness, please.
How do you move an island?
Good point. Now sell me a slide projector.
You move an island by turning a subterranean donkey-wheel. Kids these days…
OR
You could say that NBC is taking a portion of the salary they paid Leno and using it to promote the show in new ways, like paying Yahoo and YouTube to promote their viral clips. They also pay blog sites to talk about how great their shows are. Sites like ..*ahem* Uproxx. Seriously, you think other sites go all apeshit over SNL?
It’s a new medium and kudos to NBC for figuring it out, or at least taking it to the next level. It’s not the sole reason for Fallon’s rise, but it’s a big one.
Networks don’t pay us to pimp their shows editorially. If we like something, we talk about it and cover it. If we don’t like something, we say so or we ignore it completely. Period.
Not to mention, av club, grantland, and hitfix off the top of my head cover snl every week
@CajunBoy – so you’re telling me some at Uproxx actually thought Tajari P. Henson “killed it” on SNL? I liked it better when I thought it was payola
Somebody call Michael Weston, cause @Verbal Kunt just served @Cajun Boy with a a…
[puts on sunglasses]
…Burn Notice.
Ya whats up with the lack of Community recaps? There has been absolutely nothing on Community this season other then a write up about how they came up with a fake band name.
Verbal Kunt is a…
[puts on sunglasses]
…True Detective.
@Cajun Boy – There’s a difference between recapping, and saying ‘Wow, that was a great episode! I loved this skit!” for every single skit. Ask Brandon Stroud.
Opinions will vary, but the difference between what was covered two years ago on this site, to a year ago, is drastically different. Maybe the new management has a different agenda to try to draw and keep new eyeballs.
Or maybe, the writers of said articles are just following the mandate from up top and not getting a cut of the action?
Seriously though, is there THAT high of a demand for recaps of SNL that several sites have to run them?
Why isnt this site covering Community now? Last season and during the contract dealings this site had a article up every single day. The mouth of Uproxx was on Community and now it doesnt even get a head nod when they pass the street.
I would enjoy Community recaps, because Yahoo Screen fucking sucks, and I can’t even watch the new season. It plays like fucking stop motion animation.
Verbal Handjobs…this wins the internets sir.
Do you even read the SNL recaps? Mike Ryan shits on the vast majority of every show. Take your tinfoil hat off.
At the end of the day eyes on the product and the almighty $$$ matter more than comedic integrity.
How many more viewers does someone like Jimmy Fallon get per night than Conan (either currently, or when he hosted the Tonight Show, or Late Night)
And it goes beyond just the actual TV viewers, but the social media impact as well. It’s just the world we live in.
Think I have to agree with him. Give me a Conan remote segment over a Jimmy Fallon lip syncing skit any day.
“Audiences love nostalgia. It’s important to be in the moment, and the best moment to be in is a recreated moment you weren’t in in the first place!” – Paul F. Tompkins, No, You Shut Up!
[youtu.be]
Hot Dog killed in that sketch.
If that sketch had a vagina I’d marry it
I mean, the guy writes for Conan. It’s not like Conan is anything special. Late night is all the same and there’s nothing entirely wrong with that. It’s meant to entertain a certain group of people who want something very specific: some easy jokes from a friendly seeming dude.
Late night doesn’t need a shake up. It should stay the same or go away entirely. If you want radical comedy, do something else. Review, Broad City, Key & Peele, Portlandia, Veep, etc etc. If you don’t like late night, don’t watch it and don’t work in it.
Conan was insanely good about 10, 15 years ago. That was a network and 2 different shows ago, though.
I agree with your general premise, though: this guy’s opinion seems to be very Late-Night centric, when there are plenty of other outlets to see great, legitimately funny, comedy.
Conan is still great, just unfortunately not as often. His remotes are still fantastic.
I also kind of think too much emphasis is placed on the comedy thing in this debate.
Yes, the comedy is important… but is it the only thing? Most of these shows are going for a more overall variety show type feel, whereas Conan is basically sticking to the same mold he’s had for 20+ years now.
I don’t think it needs to be one or the other. They can co-exist and people can like one or the other, or both.
I wasn’t much of a Conan fan until he started doing the Clueless Gamer tbh.
Same here frosty. The Clueless Gamer bits are my favourites. I hate the Jordan Slansky bits though.
For some reason, I couldn’t help but read the Prom King tweet in Marc Maron’s voice. I think it was when I hit the word “deal.”
Hasn’t the entire environment of late night talk shows changed considerably though? When you look back at early Letterman and especially Carson, there really was no need for any extra stuff. The guests booked were much larger on a grander scale and held more weight than the guests you see now. The all time greats, the legends, the classics, they’re no longer with us. Now we get guests who will sit and tell a funny story while promoting their newest endeavor. It seems that’s only when we see them, when they’re obligated to do the late show rounds. Or when they’re following some must-see Shonda Rhimes storyline on a certain night, like Kimmell does. It’s not often guests are booked simply because they are great guests and have that great give and take with hosts.
The times have changed, technology has changed. Back in the day, if someone you liked was appearing on a talk show, you had to watch it as it aired. It seemed to give more importance the less available everything was. Now, everything is available and the guests don’t have to work as hard during an interview.
I am glad I am not the only one who feels this way
But Jimmy Fallon is so FUN you guys.
you forgot the “/s”
There is something I find unnerving about him. Almost like we’ll find out in twenty years that he has a murder basement and the nice guy shtick is just a cover.
@Android I actually like Jimmy and really enjoy his show but would not be shocked at all if in a few years we find out he’s a lying, cheating scumbag.
@Android as a brit, and not holding SNL to the revereance that the colonies do, I never got Jimmy Fallon, and this is the feeling I have whenever I see him. Like he shoulda been working at the BBC in the 70s.
I grew up on Conan and Letterman and I still love those guys, but Fallon is the most entertaining right now.
The guy’s on it and speaking from a place of passion & truth. I agree with the article that Colbert will probably be far different from the rest of the crowd and so short spanned millennials can keep watching Fallon while hopefully an alternative is present.
Don’t fool yourselves into thinking Late Night Comedy is anything but a contest to see who can drive advertising the best. Any comedy found in Late Night Comedy is a happy coincidence and great when it happens, but it’s not the goal.
Absolutely. Late night comedy has turned ludicrously vanilla, and way too reliant on gimmics. I hope Colbert does something interesting.
I just wish we could get back to guest coming on show to just have fun instead of pimping their latest crappy movie. Leave that fawning crap to Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood and E Channel. I wasn’t initially a fan of Fallon, but I have to admit he’s won me over. I won’t set out to watch him, but I won’t immediately turn him off either.
That’s one of the reasons I really miss Craigy F. He would let his guests pimp their crap for a couple minutes, then talk about random shit.
@Cdog923 I’d put Ferguson up there with the best.
Craig was the only late night talk show I watched. Intelligent but still goofy humor at its best. No one remotely compares.
Ferguson is a massive loss. He also seems the most natural at treating his guests like human beings. RIP Jeff.
Sometimes Jimmy is a bit of a doofus show, but he’s trying to make people enjoy tuning in. He’s trying a different approach how is THAT not shaking up late night? No we should totally stick with the monologue, band interaction, recurring gag, guest format right?
I get the sentiment, but it’s a bit misguided for this topic. It’s fine that Fallon does all that, but can he be funny while doing it?
Does it matter if he is or not, if people enjoy his show?
Is the point to be hilarious and delivering laughs a minute… or to keep people tuning in and coming back night after night?
Hard to argue that Fallon has been a boon for the Tonight Show since he took over, given the ratings and popularity on social media.
Years ago during one of Tom Hanks’ two appearances on Inside the Actors Studio (I can’t find which) he very briefly said a line as Forrest Gump then said James Lipton was lucky because he doesn’t do it for anyone including his family. Fast forward to the present and media icon James Corden (I don’t know who he is) has Hanks sucking his own dick as Forest and every other beloved role he ever played for seven minutes to amuse Fallon “fans”. It’s sad. I do think Colbert will change the game some come fall though
Let’s be honest: Late Night television hasn’t been aimed about being funny since Carson/Early Letterman/Early Conan. It’s all about advertising now.
I hate it personally but it’s what people want nowadays. There’s always something from a Fallon/Corden show that’s going viral. It’s amazing that the Tom Hanks segment from Corden’s first ever show as Late Late host got the show more attention than Craig Ferguson ever had.
It’s a shame but that’s what people like. Maybe it will wear off in a few years, but the internet age doesn’t look to be fading away any time soon.
hmm.. maybe some people don’t remember that Carson, Leno, Letterman (Stupid Human tricks, anyone?) all did stuff along these lines….and Conan has not been without various non-comedy bits (going by this guy’s categorization..and who would he blame for that?)….
Comedy isn’t, and never has been, one thing… it is a plethora of things (which has/does include lip synching, etc… Or maybe he would dismiss Andy Kaufman getting so much attention for his Mighty Mouse theme lip synch?) If something doesn’t match your taste, kay.. there is stuff that will.. and if you area writer, you have the chance to put your stuff out there..and guess what, there are people who crap all over your stuff as well! Does that mean your comedy doesn’t belong? No, it just means there are segments of the population you don’t reach well or at all.. It happens… You want to make an impact, then put your best stuff out there and reach people and get more attention so that you are one par or maybe pull ahead of the stuff you dislike…. if you can’t do that, then maybe you need a new gig….
I hope this guy doesn’t catch too much hell at work for this. Regarding Fallon, duBouchet’s only scratching the surface. It’s bad enough that Fallon is so lazy that he lets his guests do his job for him (i.e., make the audience laugh). That’s made worse by the fact that he seems to have made the show all about him. It’s not about the audience. It’s not about the guests. It’s about him. Whether they’re doing some nostalgia-exploiting sketch, the “slow jam” the news bit, the little kid instruments bit, or Hungry Hungry Hippos or what the fuck ever with a celebrity, he’s always front and center, as if to say, “Don’t forget whose show you’re watching! I’m fun!” I’d imagine that if you write or otherwise work for Conan, who’s the polar opposite, it would be almost impossible not to harbor some resentment for Fallon.
What is hilarious is that you love Conan for doing all these things but hate Fallon for it. Then claim like Conan is doing the opposite. Wake up Mr. Oblivious.
I love Conan for making himself the focal point of dumb contests with celebrities? You’re talking out of your ass.
The criticism is relevant, but only to the 12:30 shows, imo. As touched on, Fallon’s show is for the general populace which is why he’s a better fit than Conan for 11:30. Fallon is fun, not funny and that works better for general audiences. But to true comedy nerds, Conan will always be the best at original written comedy.
And this is why I say 12:30am shows are more relevant to criticize. They should take chances with the format like Letterman/Conan did when they had those shows. They should be about the writing and ideas rather than guests (the already watered down guests of today are even moreso at 12:30) Yet, Meyers and Corden aren’t really doing much in way of innovating or challenging the talk show format. (Note: Corden’s show with a more straight (read less fallon giggly type) host might work better than it is.)
I want to see a talk show that is mostly about comedy first and guests second. If Colbert can do that (and Colbert Report was that) then he’ll have my viewership. Fallon will still most likely win the ratings (as Leno always beat Letterman with a similar setup) but the respect will belong to Colbert.
I refuse to accept this assertion that Fallon works for the masses while Conan has a niche audience. Conan isn’t doing something abstract or high-minded or dry. He’s going for belly laughs, and that shit’s for everybody.
Conan seemingly made an effort to fit more into the 11:30 slot and was criticized for it by his old fans, and it doesn’t seem like he ever got his edge back. He’s still funny, but I get “phoning it in” vibes.
Conan (back back back in the day) and now keeps my brain lit. Even if it somehow circles back to a poop joke or a bear jerking off.
Last thing I saw on Fallon was him and Daryl Dixon shooting window panes for what felt like an hour. You can turn your brain off. People happy. Welcome to today.
I hate the segments that include “Truth or Truth!”, just what a fucking stupid concept.
This has been on my mind a lot late because I’ve been jonesing for some Colbert in his absence. I know I sound really old (I’m not!) and cynical but I really hate the new late night format of “LET’S HAVE A GOOD TIME!!!” and then they just forget about being funny. Like where’s the effort? You can have your cake and eat it too, you know. Look at some of Colbert’s bits where he had guests make appearances solely just to plug their shit — he actually made skits out of them that are actually funny, above all else.
Michael J Fox: [thecolbertreport.cc.com]
Matt Damon: [thecolbertreport.cc.com]
Tom Hanks: [thecolbertreport.cc.com]
Fuck, I miss Colbert.
I don’t get what he means by “no celebrities.” I don’t know if he’s saying these are things other shows do and Conan doesn’t. I don’t see why the stuff he’s bitching about shouldn’t exist. As long as not every single show is doing it, what’s the harm? That stuff can be pretty fun sometimes.
He means it’s lazy to substitute a celebrity cameo for an actual punchline. He’s not saying there shouldn’t be celebrity guests.
People who get paid for it?
He’s right. but, in fairness, I’ve thought most of late night to be pretty fucking marginal over the years with the exceptions of Conan and “Colbert.”
yeah, sorry, I’ve never cared for Letterman or Ferguson, and Stewart’s legacy is hugely overrated.
Making late night worth watching again is such a monumental task, I’m not sure even colbert’s immense talent is a match for it.
Late Night was a dying breed, Jimmy was able to incorporate a different style and vibe to the masses. The way he was able to utilize the roots as a in house band is genius!!! One of the key factors to the shows success.
Not to mention the years of experience that he’s gain as a cast member on SNL. He has become an icon and a force to be reckoned with on late night TV.
I grow up watching Conan O’Brien, Letterman and Jay Leno. It was a classic era. The formatted has become old and tiresome. Usually the late night show is used for both as a promotional machine for Hollywood and musical releases.
Jimmy has been able to merge both worlds and and be innovative at the same time. Look at the range of people he’s reaching! The demographics itself is no longer for the people who watch Letterman or Jay Leno. Even the way they approach actors and musians is different. Jimmy in my honest opinion is more relatable and he comes across very sincere and genuine.
I’m enjoying this era, his team is using all tools within the social media to being a very fresh approach and also bring in new viewers.
College kids maybe? Or young parents who are up at night with newborns? And people who work shifts that allow them to stay up late.
I’m not a big fan of people bitching about things being made for the lowest common denominator, it’s fucking capitalism, if you’re older than 30 and you haven’t managed to make peace with our economic system I don’t know what to tell you.
And yes, comedy and comedians are different when they’re not heroin-addled manic-depressives working in shitty bars. Whenever something gets popular, they make it more widely acceptable. Fallon isn’t going to be doing a bit about abortion, or the war on drugs, go somewhere else for that.
You might as well complain that a show on ABC doesn’t have graphic portrayals of violence. No shit, and that’s not its place.
If no groundbreaking comedy was being created anywhere I could see him having a point, but late-night, big three, talk-shows being a little toothless isn’t a real fucking complaint.
I’m glad to know I’m not the only person who thinks this lip-syncing thing is stupid.
Somewhat related: I didn’t even realize until a couple of days ago there’s a entire TV show dedicated to it. AN ENTIRE TV SHOW.
Articles like this always remind me of the SyFy argument:
People always complain that SyFy doesn’t show enough science fiction. Yet sci-fi is expensive and not enough people watch to sustain it. Wrestling continues to get better ratings, despite SyFy trying everything under the sun to try and get people to watch it’s original programming.
Complain about comedy all you want, but as long as Fallon is #1, he won’t be going anywhere. If you want to change late night, get your own money and produce your own show … and then watch it fail, like every other network has done.
If someone had the magical cure for late night, then they would be leading the pack. So be as much of a comedy snob as you want, the fly over states still watched Leno in droves.
I also feel that TV Shows work better for character-heavy stories, which doesn’t take into consideration what Sci Fi does best, world-building. Like…if you’re just going to be making another show about an angry man trying to get over his past, there’s no real need to do it IN SPACE!!!
This writer is an idiot. A “Tonight Show” with no celebrities is stand up and they show that on Comedy Central. You’re welcome.
@Alice was Pushed, RIGHT ON THE MONEY. plus Carson was larger than life 2, & Letterman was edgy. it was like “right” & “left” comedy. 2 me comedy is supposed 2 push boundaries & show the truth behind things. yeah, theres that “feel-good” comedy too, but the greats opened ur eyes. it was like that on late night as well. now its mostly feel-good stuff. not that i dont like Fallon, cuz he is funny, but not like early O’Brien, or even Ferguson. but hey who am i, right? its not like ppl r supposed 2 like the same thing. thatd b pretty boring if we all did.
It was a sad day when Craig Ferguson left the scene.
The guy is so right…it hurts. Late Night is dying a very painful death right now. Everything they try is to make a viral video…on a Network. It’s tripe. I think they have missed the demographic they were trying to secure by pandering to the internet generation. They don’t turn on the TV to see cat videos. They turn on the TV to WATCH TV. I think CBS has the right idea bringing in Colbert. Because that guy has the internet generation in his back pocket. If he can do the same thing on Late Night TV…he can maybe save the genre.
Lmao. This guy is a comedic genius. He thinks people watch late night talk shows for great comedy! Hahaha
They are meant to promote celebrity’s projects. Entertain mom and dad, sell em some shit, send em to bed.
This is like ranting about the fast food industry needs to make better food. Care about comedy so much? Starve a bit and hit the stage. Write a screenplay, book etc.
Get out of your dumb job. That was a good laugh though.
Jimmy’s segments can be funny SOMEtimes, but good god that guy is a complete kiss-ass with anyone he interviews.
Hardwick is underrated.@Midnight is funniest stuff on late night.
I thought he was going to say how there should be more diversity as far as writers. Count how many black writers there have been in the history of late night. But then he’s benefiting from this so thats not a problem to him. #whiteprivilege
Does anyone really expect quality from any of these shows? It’s something to watch while you drift off to sleep.
Sorry, I know this is supposed to be a discussion of issues in modern late night comedy, but did someone call Chris Hardwick a prom king while I wasn’t looking?
Yes, we are getting old my friend. Back when it was LMAO at a joke.. not an applause sign over their heads signaling their applause.
Everyone’s already said too much for me to bother. But I still want to say that picture for this post makes me very uncomfortable, and I want to sound off a “Durst Alert.”
He’s absolutely right. Jimmy Fallon sucks, Jimmy Kimmel is somehow worse, and Chris Hardwick is a dork (although @Midnight can get some really funny guests). I have faith that Stephen Colbert will do a good job- he’ll still do the “dicking around with celebrity” bits like Fallon and Kimmel, but he’ll also be funny on his own merits.
Jimmy Fallon is the worst.
Kimmel is definitely way better
When are we going to grow out of these tired references to high school insecurities? What America needs is a genius. a real genius, who just doesn’t give an eff about standard references (which Conan exploits as much as anyone), and I mean in any medium, because eventually, if we don’t start using our freedom better, we’re going to lose it.