In 2017, The Tonight Show hasn't been quite the juggernaut it's been for decades, as Stephen Colbert's Late Show has consistently pulled in larger audiences, so what better time than now to bring back a familiar face from the show's history? That's right, Jimmy Fallon welcomed back his hosting predecessor Jay Leno, who looked completely natural in the spotlight once more, rattling off goofy jokes for the Tonight Show monologue. Check him out!
As soon as Jimmy Fallon started acting like something was wrong with his leg, audiences seemed to know exactly what was happening, as this is basically how things played out last year when Jay Leno stopped by to prove his comedy skills were still intact. Regardless, the monologue was still a pretty fun bit, and it was once again strange to hear jokes about Donald Trump and the modern D.C. era coming out of Jay Leno's voice, which is more familiarly suited to jokes about Obama and the Clintons. Thankfully, he did get to poke some fun at Bill Clinton's morals, so the old times were felt.
With that "pussy" joke, Jay Leno quite possibly made the most adult joke in Tonight Show's recent history, so his monologue cameo was worth it just for that. Plus, who can hate on classic Johnny Carson schtick like the "How bad is it?" gag that both Leno and Fallon ran through at the end? Simple as it is, it's one of my favorite joke set-ups, and just about every punchline seen here worked. Especially the Netflix one and the Kendall Jenner RC Cola one.
Jay Leno hasn't been missing from the spotlight just because he left The Tonight Show behind some years back. He's still pimping out his massive car collection, and other automobile treats, on Jay Leno's Garage on CNBC. As well, he appeared on Lip Sync Battle and has popped up in Ted 2 and ABC's sitcom Last Man Standing. Not to mention the biggest gig of all, a recurring voice role on Disney's Mickey and the Roadster Racers. Okay, so maybe that wasn't the biggest.
The Tonight Show is currently on location in Orlando, as Universal Studios just opened up the new ride "Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon," which obviously features the comedian and SNL vet. Jay Leno is actually performing a stand-up set tonight at Orlando's Hard Rock Live as part of a charity event for the CECF Wish Foundation. He might not be making the same kind of jokes that he made on The Tonight Show though, at least about Trump.
You can watch The Tonight Show weeknights on NBC at 11:35 p.m. ET. And head to our midseason premiere schedule and our summer TV guide to see all the shows coming to the small screen in the near future.
