Seth Meyers has been the host of Late Night with Seth Meyers for 10 years. In the show's early days, he told The Hollywood Reporter that he felt he was a “competent” host.
“I remember thinking, 'Oh, this is just a slightly worn-down copy of what came before,'” he said in an interview.
Two things have caused him to rethink how he approaches the show: the ugly 2016 election and the coronavirus pandemic. There's a long-running joke that Trump's candidacy is partly to blame: When he hosted the White House Correspondents' Dinner in 2011, Meyers delivered a scathing critique of the former president, who is now embroiled in multiple lawsuits.
Ten years later, Myers finds himself as a relaunched late-night host, still dressing in the same smart-casual garb he did when he hosted the show from home. He's also added some buzzworthy segments, including a segment unique to him and the show, in which the now 50-year-old hosts a three-day drinking session with A-list celebrities.
Late Night with Seth Meyers and “Rihanna Bounce”
As for the “Daytime” segment, Myers said he's been getting a flurry of pitches from celebrity agents because of what he calls the “Rihanna bounce.” The pop superstar is Myers' fourth celebrity guest. The “Daytime” episode is his most-watched to date, with 22 million views.
“The sad thing is that this isn't a great idea like, say, Carpool Karaoke, where you can do it over and over and it's not going to damage your liver. It's really weird that we're doing this kind of lo-fi talk show and this is totally outside the tone of the show,” he explained.
“From the moment I book it I feel terrified, then I have a great time, wake up the next morning with only a vague memory of how it went and I feel panicked,” Myers added.
He and his staff do a lot of prep work and research before booking a celebrity guest.
“When pitches are made, people often say, 'Trust me, it's fun to drink with them,'” he said.
Myers insisted that the last thing he wanted was a customer who was “unhappy or unconscious.”
“The funny thing is, daytime drinking was something I'd always wanted to try, and I was just trying to figure out how to do it with my brother,” he explained. The second episode of Day Drinking was spent with his brother and father in Brooklyn.
“We always thought we'd have guests on the show and do more comedy but realized that wasn't our forte. We think having a drink in the daytime adds to the authenticity we're looking for in our interviews when we're completely sober,” Myers added.
After drinking that much over the course of 13 episodes, you'd think the former SNL cast member would be a good drinker. But…
“No! As I'm older and have kids, I drink less in general, but I went to college in the Midwest where I drank heavily in the '90s, so I think that gave me a good foundation,” the Northwestern University grad insisted.
But he still takes pride in the fact that he outdid guest Dua Lipa.
“I mean, I have love for Dua Lipa, but I feel bad for her having to know every day that a man who was almost 50 years old at the time was cheating on her and getting her drunk,” he joked.
In that episode, Myers prepared a special drink in honor of the singer's new single “Houdini,” which he named the drink the Houdini. In keeping with the theme, the second drink he made was named Abracadabra.
Speaking of turning 50, the presenter turned half a century last year and was surprised by the Late Night staff with a huge birthday party, complete with balloons, pizza and more.
