John Oliver doesn\u2019t care about Jay Leno\u2019s opinions.<\/p>\n
The \u201cLast Week Tonight\u201d host, 48, responded to Leno, 75, recently criticizing late-night TV hosts<\/a> for alienating half their audience with one-sided political jabs.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to take a hard pass on taking comedic advice from Jay Leno,\u201d Oliver told The Hollywood Reporter <\/a>in an interview published Tuesday.<\/p>\n John Oliver on \u201cLast Week Tonight.\u201d Courtesy of HBO<\/p>\n The British comedian also defended sometimes upsetting viewers with jokes on his show.<\/p>\n \u201cComedy can\u2019t be for everyone. It\u2019s inherently subjective,\u201d Oliver said. \u201cSo, yeah, when you do stand-up, some people try to play to a broader audience, which is completely legitimate. Others decide not to, which is equally legitimate.\u201d <\/p>\n Jay Leno on \u201cThe Tonight Show\u201d in 2001. AP<\/p>\n Jay Leno performs at the Orpheum Theatre in Wichita, Kansas on May 8. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cI guess I don\u2019t think it\u2019s a question of what you should do because I don\u2019t think comedy is prescriptive in that way,\u201d he continued. \u201cIt\u2019s just what people want. I think our show clearly comes from a point of view, but most of those long stories we do are not party political. They\u2019re about systemic issues.\u201d<\/p>\n Oliver, who has hosted \u201cLast Week Tonight\u201d since 2014, pointed out that he doesn\u2019t only discuss divisive political issues on the HBO show. <\/p>\n John Oliver during an episode of HBO\u2019s \u201cLast Week Tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOur last few shows were about gang databases, AI slop, juvenile justice, med spas, air traffic control,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m not saying that these don\u2019t have a point of view in them. Of course they do. But I hope a lot of them actually reach across people\u2019s political persuasions.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou want people to at least be able to agree on the problem,\u201d Oliver added, \u201ceven if you disagree on what the solution to it is.\u201d<\/p>\n During his\u00a0interview<\/a>\u00a0last month with Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation CEO David Trulio, Leno called out late-night hosts for their political talk after CBS announced it\u00a0was canceling<\/a> Stephen Colbert\u2019s run on \u201cThe Late Show.\u201d<\/p>\n Jay Leno at the opening night premiere of \u201cMidas Man\u201d at the 20th Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival in June 2025. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t understand why you would alienate one particular group, you know, or just don\u2019t do it at all,\u201d Leno said. \u201cI\u2019m not saying you have to throw your support or whatever, but just do what\u2019s funny.\u201d<\/p>\n Stephen Colbert on \u201cThe Late Show.\u201d CBS<\/p>\n Leno also recalled how he tried to be politically neutral when he hosted \u201cThe Tonight Show\u201d for 21 years.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was fun to me when I got hate letters, \u2018Dear Mr. Leno, you and your Republican friends\u2019 and\u200b,\u00a0\u2018Well, Mr. Leno, I hope you and your\u00a0Democratic buddies are happy\u2019 \u2014 over the same joke,\u201d he shared. <\/p>\n \u201cI go, \u2018Well, that\u2019s good,’\u201d Leno added. \u201cThat\u2019s how you get a whole audience.\u201d<\/p>\n Jay Leno interviewing John McCain on \u201cThe Tonight Show\u201d in 2001. REUTERS<\/p>\n The Emmy Award winner said that late-night hosts today \u201chave to be content with half the audience because you have to give your opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think anybody wants to hear a lecture,\u201d Leno went on. \u201cI love political humor, don\u2019t get me wrong, but what happens is people wind up cozying too much to one side or the other.\u201d<\/p>\n Jay Leno attends the 20th Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival. Getty Images<\/p>\n Late\u200b-night comedy was thrown into turmoil in July following CBS\u2019 decision to cancel \u201cThe Late Show with Stephen Colbert.\u201d The move has been accused of being politically motivated move since President Donald Trump\u00a0won a huge election interference lawsuit\u00a0<\/a>against CBS\u2019 parent company Paramount just days later.<\/p>\n Stephen Colbert on \u201cThe Late Show\u201d in 2017. AP<\/p>\n