John Oliver is staying put for now at HBO, no matter whom his “business daddy” might end up being next year. The “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” host has extended his contract with the network through the end of 2027, Variety has confirmed.
But perhaps because of the ownership uncertainty, Oliver’s extension is only for one year, vs. its usual three-year pickups. Oliver has been vocal on “Last Week Tonight” about his concerns over Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery: “Yeah, not great news,” he said in a March episode. “In fact, if I may quote anyone who’s ever accidentally sat on their Roku remote, I’m in Paramount now … how the f-ck do I get out of here?’”
When news of Paramount’s desire to take over Warner Bros. first emerged last September, he also had this to say: “Please stay the f-ck away from us. You are not my real business daddy, and you never will be!” At the time, Oliver was critical of Paramount’s settlement with the Trump administration over its baseless lawsuit against CBS’ “60 Minutes.” He has also been critical of Bari Weiss’ takeover of CBS News.
Oliver resumed new episodes of “Last Week Tonight” this week after a summer hiatus, and spent much of the show dissecting Donald Trump’s latest doings — potentially also putting him in the crosshairs of the Trump-friendly Paramount Skydance owners.
“Last Week Tonight” was last renewed for three years in December 2023, bringing the show up to this year and its Season 13. “Over the past decade, John and his exceptional team have combined deep research and intelligence with cutting humor to tackle a broad range of subjects, both widely discussed and unconventional,” Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO, HBO & Max Content, said in a statement at the time.
“Last Week Tonight” first launched in 2014 and is now in its 13th season. The show has scored 28 Emmys; last year it won the scripted variety series and variety writing categories (where it has dominated for the last eight years). The show also has two Peabody Awards, five Critics Choice Awards, two GLAAD Media Awards, six Writers Guild Awards and eight consecutive PGA Awards.
“Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” is produced for HBO by Avalon and Peyance Productions; executive producers are Oliver, Tim Carvell, Liz Stanton, Jon Thoday and James Taylor. Director is Paul Pennolino.
THR first reported the news of Oliver’s deal extension.