Before former Daily Show host Jon Stewart was replaced by Trevor Noah, the program’s youngest correspondent, Jessica Williams was considered one of Comedy Central’s top choices. After all, the powers that be behind Hot Tub Time Machine 2 predicted the then-25-year-old would eventually take over as host in the near future. Unfortunately it seems this fictionalized scenario will never become a reality, as Williams and Comedy Central announced on Tuesday that Thursday, June 30 would be her last day.
To commemorate the occasion, the network’s website posted a montage of some of the correspondent’s greatest hits. The 26-year-old comedian also talked to Entertainment Weekly about her decision to leave the show and why, of the all the reasons (i.e. the current presidential election), she chose to exit now. Turns out Williams still enjoys the work she does for The Daily Show, and if the chance ever presented itself, she wouldn’t hesitate to return to the late night circuit with something of her own.
Do you see yourself returning to the late-night commentary/comedy world at some point, either in the form of 2 Dope Queens or some other vehicle?
Yeah, definitely. I feel like that’s something I would do years down the line, once I’ve sort of figured it out and want, like, a job that I do every single day… I’m a little afraid, a little terrified for what is about to happen [with the election]. And I think that maybe it’s best for me to step aside for a minute and not get so fired up about it. I think it’ll actually be kind of good for me. But we’re in good hands as long as we have Sam and Oliver and Trevor. I think they got it covered.
As for what’s next, her primary reasons for leaving The Daily Show are twofold. A burgeoning film career, which kicked off with 2015’s Jemaine Clement-starring People Places Things, and a new pilot she’s writing, producing and starring in for Comedy Central with Broad City and Difficult People alum Naomi Ekperigin. The untitled project concerns “a young woman who is a feminist and who imagines herself to be ‘woke'”:
I think that a lot of the time, we have this idea that when you are, like, “woke”… that you should always have your sh*t together. But I know that often for me, as a black woman of color, I feel like I’m supposed to represent these ideals and values that I was taught as a young lady. Like I’m supposed to carry myself in a special type of way, but oftentimes I’m, like… I’m still in my 20s, and still kind of a mess. So it’s a show about somebody in their 20s who has all these social ideas, but still does not have it together.
No other details are known about Williams’s new show at this time. To bid her adieu, watch Thursday’s episode of The Daily Show to watch the correspondent chat with Bernie Sanders supporters who are voting for Donald Trump.
(Via Entertainment Weekly)
