The numbers are in, and they’re making headlines across the media landscape: Greg Gutfeld’s guest appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon has delivered a massive ratings boost for NBC’s flagship late-night program — and the ripple effects are still being felt.
For months, late-night television has been plagued by flat or declining ratings, partisan criticism, and the perception that the genre has become predictable. But when Gutfeld, the Fox News personality who has been dubbed “the king of late night” by his network thanks to his dominance in the 10 p.m. hour, stepped onto Fallon’s stage, audiences responded in a big way.
The Numbers Tell the Story
Nielsen data shows that Fallon’s Tonight Show drew 1.7 million total viewers for the episode featuring Gutfeld — a 36% jump from the prior week’s average. In the fragmented world of late-night television, where each tenth of a ratings point can mean the difference between holding steady or losing ground, a spike of that magnitude is significant.
On YouTube, the segment featuring Gutfeld racked up over 916,000 views in short order, an impressive performance for a late-night clip that wasn’t tied to a musical performance or viral comedy sketch.
Perhaps even more telling: The Tonight Show typically sees a ratings dip during its second half, but the night Gutfeld appeared, the audience actually grew when he came on. That’s a reversal of the usual trend — and a clear signal that viewers stuck around, or tuned in specifically, to see him.
Not About Politics — But Still Political
One of the more surprising aspects of Gutfeld’s Tonight Show appearance is that it wasn’t overtly political. There were no heated debates about policy, no partisan sparring. Fallon and Gutfeld talked, joked, and kept things light.
And yet, in the current media environment, simply having a prominent right-leaning television host on a mainstream late-night program felt like a political act. As Fox & Friends co-host Ainsley Earhardt noted, “Late night shows… don’t like to have conservatives on, or people from other networks they disagree with. But this was a ratings boost. People like to hear both sides.”
That’s a sentiment Gutfeld himself has echoed. On his Fox News program, he addressed the appearance and the reaction to it. “I have everyone on my show — Republicans, Democrats, comedians, and even guys who call themselves comedians,” he said, before delivering a pointed observation: “Late-night shows fawn over hundreds of liberal guests, yet having one right-leaning guest on sends them into a frenzy. But are people really turning on Fallon for having me on the show? Yes. In fact, people did turn on Fallon. The Tonight Show’s ratings jumped by double-digit percentage when I was on. Haters… maybe they should learn something.”
The ‘Haters’ and the Hype
That “haters” line wasn’t just a throwaway. Gutfeld’s point was clear: instead of vilifying someone for appearing in a space they don’t usually inhabit, perhaps the takeaway should be that audiences respond positively to diversity of thought — and to moments that break the mold.
He went further, suggesting that one reason certain liberal-leaning comedy shows underperform is because “these dirtbags can only talk to themselves.” In other words, they’re playing to the same audience night after night, without reaching out to people who don’t already agree with them.
It’s a criticism that’s been leveled at late-night for years. In the era of Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, and even early David Letterman, late-night was more about mass appeal than ideological alignment. Guests from across the political spectrum appeared regularly, and interviews could be both playful and substantive.
A Call for Change in Late Night
Lawrence Jones, another Fox News personality, framed Gutfeld’s appearance as a lesson for the rest of the late-night world: “No one is saying you can’t be a liberal host. You can’t demonize the other side… Bring one point of view on your show and expect the other side to watch it. I think this is a note to all the rest of them: you can alter course. It doesn’t have to be just Greg. Of course, you probably want the king of late night on. But just have outside voices.”
Earhardt added that late night is supposed to be fun: “We are not going there to watch the news.” That’s another important distinction. While political monologues have become a staple of shows like The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, audiences may be craving a break from the relentless news cycle and instead want the kind of entertainment that can appeal across divides.
A Look Back at Late-Night History
Brian Kilmeade, also on Fox & Friends, offered a historical perspective, recalling how Tonight Show host Jack Paar would have guests like John F. Kennedy on, engaging in conversation that mixed humor with substance. Even during moments of national crisis, late-night could be a place for both levity and thoughtful discussion.
Kilmeade suggested that the genre’s shift toward a single political viewpoint has hurt its ability to serve that broad role. “For the most part, you were getting a total release,” he said of the old days. “If there wasn’t a sense that there was a serious thing happening — war, Cuban Missile Crisis — you’d go to late night” for a break.
Colbert Still Leads — For Now
Despite the big night for Fallon, Stephen Colbert’s Late Show still edged out The Tonight Show in overall viewership that week. Colbert maintains a loyal audience and has the advantage of a strong lead-in from the CBS primetime lineup. But the fact that Fallon could close the gap — even for one night — by booking a guest like Gutfeld is significant.
A 36% boost is hard to ignore, especially when so much of the conversation around late-night TV focuses on stagnation and how to attract younger or disengaged viewers. If the goal is to make the format feel relevant again, moments like Gutfeld’s appearance offer a possible blueprint.
What This Means Going Forward
The question now is whether other late-night hosts will take the hint. Will they start booking more guests from across the political spectrum? Will they see value in inviting people their regular audience might not agree with, simply because it makes for good television and potentially bigger ratings?
Or will Gutfeld’s appearance be treated as a one-off — a curiosity that provided a temporary spike but doesn’t fit with the show’s long-term strategy?
For Fallon, the episode was a win in the numbers game and a reminder of what The Tonight Show can be at its best: a place where different personalities can share a stage, make each other laugh, and keep viewers engaged past midnight.
The Broader Takeaway
Ultimately, the reaction to Gutfeld on Fallon underscores a bigger truth about television in 2025: audiences are fractured, but they’re also curious. They’ll tune in when something feels unexpected, when the usual lines are crossed, and when a guest promises something they can’t get anywhere else.
For Gutfeld, it was a chance to show he could hold court outside of his own Fox News platform. For Fallon, it was proof that booking outside the usual comfort zone can pay off. For late-night TV as a whole, it might just be the nudge needed to start inviting a wider range of voices — and maybe win back some of the viewers who have drifted away.
As Gutfeld himself put it, the results “got to hurt the haters.” But they also might have given late-night a glimpse of a more inclusive, and more interesting, future.
