The word:
Fox and Conan nearing deal
New show could launch as soon as this fall as talks continue
By Diego Vasquez
Mar 18, 2010
It has seemed inevitable, since the moment Conan O'Brien walked off "The Tonight Show" set for the final time, that the comedian would end up at Fox, whose brand of irreverence matches Conan's own.
Now it seems Fox and O'Brien are deep into talks that could result in a new show launching as soon as fall, though right now the main goal is to have a deal in place by May's upfront, so the network can give O'Brien a splashy roll-out sure to needle rival NBC.
The deal is expected to be firmed up in the coming weeks, according to the Los Angeles Times, even as O'Brien entertains other offers, including one from syndicator Debmar-Mercury for an early fringe show and several others from cable networks.
Still, a lot of hurdles remain to the Fox deal. The network still must convince its affiliates of the wisdom of yet another go-round at a talk show, after the high-profile failures of Joan Rivers and Chevy Chase in the '90s.
The stations will likely be loathe to replace their now-profitable syndicated content in the 11 p.m. hour with an unproven show starring a man who, all hoopla aside, saw his ratings plunge at NBC, which he left in January after the network decided to reinstall Jay Leno in late night.
Part of Fox's concern is putting on a show that will be profitable, which means slashing O'Brien's reported $90 million production budget at NBC to $60 million.
O'Brien is prohibited from appearing on TV until September, per his exit deal with NBC. In fact, right now he's readying a 30-city "Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour."
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