Trevor Noah will have some big shoes to fill.
Nearly two months after Jon Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show, Comedy Central has hired Noah, a comedian from South Africa. The New York Times was the first to report the news.
“You don’t believe it for the first few hours,” Noah told the paper. “You need a stiff drink, and then unfortunately you’re in a place where you really can’t get alcohol.”
The 31-year-old made his Daily Show debut as an on-air contributor in December and has made a mere three appearances on the show.
“I’m thrilled for the show and for Trevor. He’s a tremendous comic and talent that we’ve loved working with,” Stewart, who has sat on Daily Show chair for 16 years, said of the hire. [via NYT]
According to Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless, the network “talked to women. We talked to men. We found in Trevor the best person for the job.”
Naturally, the Internet and the comedy world are already celebrating Noah’s new job, start date TBD.
Thank you president Obama pic.twitter.com/PgFJCCyRTa
— Chris Rock (@chrisrock) March 30, 2015
Very excited to welcome our next host: @Trevornoah! That's right – another guy in late night from Soweto. http://t.co/zlNhBmjg6I
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) March 30, 2015
I know Trevor Noah a bit. Nice guy. I'm sure won't mind letting me host the Daily Show instead of him.
— Todd Barry (@toddbarry) March 30, 2015
Details on Stewart’s last show have yet to be announced.
[Lead photo courtesy of Getty Images]
