It’s fitting that, as James Corden closes in on the end of his tenure as the host of The Late Late Show, the most enduring and headline-grabbing farewell will probably not come from the host’s chair in Los Angeles, but from one final installment of Carpool Karaoke. Though CBS will air a prime-time special commemorating the British actor-comedian’s eight years as host before his final episode on Thursday, it’s the show’s signature segment, in which a typically committed Corden and a celebrity guest enthusiastically belt out songs during the host’s “commute”, that became an institution, the show’s bulwark in the ever-jockeying field of late-night television.
Since Corden took over for the Scottish-American comedian Craig Ferguson in 2015, The Late Late Show, produced by Ben Winston (who has since also taken on the Grammys) and Rob Crabbe, has occupied a small corner of the linear television map. It’s the 34th most watched show on CBS; ratings have been decently consistent over the years, though of course minor compared with the pre-streaming heyday of late-night television. But its celebrity bits such as “Spill Your Guts or Fill Your Guts” (AKA “Truth or Eat Repulsive Food”), anywhere from grating (traffic-stopping crosswalk musicals) to inspired (directing a Harry Styles music video in a lucky rando’s apartment) allowed the show to punch far above its late time slot and ratings weight.
