Jon Stewart is uncertain about The Daily Show‘s future if the Skydance–Paramount merger goes through.
The host of the Comedy Central program (which is owned by Paramount Global) was recently asked by a listener on his The Weekly Show With Jon Stewart podcast, “Do you think Skydance would get rid of The Daily Show after the merger goes through?” Stewart’s response came shortly before The Late Show With Stephen Colbert‘s shocking cancellation at CBS.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t heard anything from them,” Stewart responded. “They haven’t called me and said, ‘Don’t get too comfortable in that office, Stewart.’ But let me tell you something, I’ve been kicked out of shittier establishments than that. We’ll land on our feet. I honestly don’t know.”
The host added that he “likes to believe that without The Daily Show, Comedy Central’s kind of muzak at this point.”
“I think we’re the only sort of life that exists on a current basis other than South Park. But I’d like to think we bring enough value to the property, like if they’re looking at it as purely a real estate transaction, I think we bring a lot of value,” Stewart continued. “But that may not be their consideration. I don’t know, they may sell the whole fucking place for parts. I just don’t know. We’ll deal with it when we do, but I’m so happy and proud of everybody that works there. Like they want to do that, knock themselves out.”
“We’ve all got a surmisal about who actually is owning it and what his ideology is. But ideology may not play a part,” he added, referencing Skydance Media CEO David Ellison, who has been praised by Trump.
The Hollywood Reporter has reached out to Skydance for comment.
Skydance is currently in the process of acquiring Paramount Global, which is the parent company of CBS and Comedy Central. However, the deal is still pending FCC approval, more than a year after the proposed merger was announced. Earlier this month, Paramount agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit from President Donald Trump, who sued over former Vice President Kamala Harris’ 60 Minutes interview. Sources previously told The Hollywood Reporter that Paramount believes the lawsuit posed a threat to Skydance’s deal to acquire the company, which requires regulatory approval, including the transfer of FCC licenses. Brendan Carr is the current chairman of the FCC after being nominated by Trump.
Both Colbert and Stewart have been critical of the settlement, with the latter calling it “shameful” earlier this month.