NBC is ending Lilly Singh’s late-night show, “A Little Late With Lilly Singh,” with its second season. The show airs weeknights at 1:30 a.m. The move comes as NBC is moving out of original programming for the slot that it previously called a “creative playground,” Deadline reported. It further speculated that the drop in ratings could be because of the show’s timing. There was also a large gap between seasons one and two due to the pandemic. When Singh returned in January 2021, she had to shoot in her house rather than a studio. The final episode of “A Little Late With Lilly Singh” will air on Thursday June 3.
In 2019, Singh, an Indo-Canadian, who was formerly known as “Superwoman,” made history by becoming the only openly queer woman of color to host a late-night show on a major network.The end of Singh’s series leaves Samantha Bee and her TBS show, “Full Frontal,” as the only woman to host a late night series for a major linear network. (Amber Ruffin hosts a series on Peacock.)
In a statement, she announced her first-look deal with Universal Television Alternative Studio with her Unicorn Island Productions banner. “Two years ago, I embarked on the wild journey of late night TV,” Singh said. “I knew this show was about more than me, and I will be forever grateful for the opportunity and support. Today, I write to you from a similar place of deep gratitude to share some news,” she said. “I’m going to focus on the slate of projects my company Unicorn Island Productions is developing, and we’re saying goodbye to A Little Late with Lilly Singh. I have a desire to make longer form content telling underrepresented stories, which is difficult to execute on a nightly show.”
She added: “This is just the beginning; I can’t wait to share more with you but this is all I can tease for now. I’m beyond grateful for your support past, present and future,” she added. “And to the Late with Lilly crew, I’m so proud of the progress we made in diversifying late night. We’ve given 21 people their late night debut this season. That’s pretty incredible and it’s been a true honor.”
She is also attached to star in a Netflix comedy series that she is developing with Kenya Barris. It’s being produced by Barris’ Khalabo Ink Society with writers/executive producers Nell Scovell and Diya Mishra. Singh will also produce alongside Polly Auritt of Unicorn Island Productions.
Twitter went abuzz with the news as many of Singh’s flowers lauded her for being a trailblazer. A user named Eddie Vertigo tweeted: “You are so charming & funny, I enjoy you & your sense of humor so much. I’m sure some people would say you talk too fast or loud, but that just made you more relatable, like having one of my friends over. Always be you, ’cause you’re cool. Looking forward to your next projects!”
A tweet by Rajvi said: #LateWithLilly has shown us such a different side of @Lilly and it’s been such a beautiful journey to witness the growth.”
Singh took to Twitter as well to reply to her fans. “So much love for our #LateWithLilly fam. You all are the best.”