After eight years, James Corden has ended his US late-night chat show with the support of Harry Styles, Will Ferrell, and US President Joe Biden. Ferrell and Styles broke the Late Late Show host’s desk, and Biden joked in a video that he was “surprised you lasted eight years in any job” in the message.
The British host’s last remarks included both sincere sentiment and hilarity.
He concluded by pleading with US viewers not to succumb to those who are “trying to stoke differences” in the nation. “Moving here to America eight years ago, it was a huge leap for me and my family,” he remarked. “My son was three, our daughter was twelve weeks old, and we now have another small person, and she’s American.”
“We started this show with Obama, then Trump, then a global pandemic, and I’ve watched America change a lot over these past eight years. I’ve watched divisions grow and I’ve seen and I’ve felt a sense of negativity grow and at points boil over. And I guess all I really want to say tonight is, I implore you to remember what America signifies to the rest of the world. My entire life, it has always been a place of optimism and joy, and yes it has flaws – so many. But show me a country that doesn’t.”
The current president said earlier in his pre-recorded message: “I’m going to miss you buddy,” and thanked Corden for “never making me sing in a car” — a reference to the popular Carpool Karaoke segment.
With a sledgehammer in hand, Ferrell entered the show and started smashing the desk, Styles went on to complete the task. After Corden was forced to choose which of his two guests he believed to be more talented in the final round of Spill Your Guts Or Fill Your Guts, the Elf and Anchorman actor was chosen.
Before his final episode aired, Corden admitted to BBC Radio 2’s breakfast programme: “It is a strange one, I haven’t really ever felt like this before. I just know in my core that it’s the right thing to do for so many personal and professional reasons.”
Craig Ferguson, a comedian and actor, handed up the late-night chat programme to Corden in 2015.
He admitted to the BBC that he had never imagined it would be a hit and called the journey a “glorious ride”.
