Jimmy Fallon, the presenter of “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” has apologised to the cast and crew of “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” following reports of a “toxic” work environment on the show’s set. On Thursday, the Rolling Stone magazine published an article in which numerous colleagues claimed that “The Tonight Show” has been a hazardous workplace for years due to Fallon’s “erratic behaviour.”
Fallon, who took over as host of the late night show from Jay Leno in 2014, held a brief Zoom conference on Thursday evening and apologised to the workers, according to American publication Variety.
“It’s embarrassing and I feel so bad. Sorry if I embarrassed you and your family and friends. I feel so bad I can’t even tell you,” the 48-year-old TV personality said.
“I want this show to be fun, it should be inclusive for everybody, it should be funny, it should be the best show, the best people,” he added.
The Rolling Stone spoke to two current and 14 former employees who claimed the show’s working environment has been “far outside the boundaries of what’s considered normal in the high-pressure world of late-night TV”.
“It’s a bummer because it was my dream job. Writing for late night is a lot of people’s dream jobs, and they’re coming into this, and it becomes a nightmare very quickly. It’s sad that it’s like that, especially knowing that it doesn’t have to be that way,” one employee said.
