“There was literally free money on the table, and so I took it,” Greg Gutfeld says of his Fox News rise. In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, the Gutfeld! host said his show thriving because the traditional players ignored a huge swath of the American audience.
“I showed [mainstream media] that they don’t own the culture,” he explained. “You took people for granted, you insulted everybody else, and we’re the ones now who are having fun.”
For Gutfeld, that “fun” is the key distinction. He argues that while Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, and Seth Meyers have leaned heavily into nightly outrage, Gutfeld! has carved out its own space. “I think doing a late-night show that makes everyone feel bad is a disservice,” he said. “That’s when you have people switching the channel to come to us. They didn’t even know that we existed until then.”
His comments arrive at a moment of upheaval for traditional late night. CBS recently canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert despite its No. 1 ranking among broadcast late-night programs, and network executives across the dial have been cutting budgets as ratings decline. Against that backdrop, Gutfeld positions his Fox show as proof that a late night -styled show can still connect with audiences—if it stops chasing the “cool kids at the table” and instead caters to those who feel overlooked.
Gutfeld’s framing isn’t without contradiction. Gutfeld!, which airs at 10pm ET and 7pm PT, leans heavily into Fox News’ primetime culture-war playbook, and critics argue that his version of “fun” often lands closer to grievance than comedy. But his larger point—that late night left viewers on the table—fits neatly into his disruptor narrative.
“They don’t own the culture,” he said. “We do.”
Gutfeld also reflected on his Tonight Show debut last month, which drew strong ratings and plenty of attention. “It was fun! It went the way I think we both wanted it to go, which was like an old-school TV segment you would have seen on Carson,” Gutfeld said. “Just two people having a fun conversation. I probably talked too much, but I had to tell that drinking story because I’ve been telling that story for years, and the only person I hadn’t told that to was Jimmy.”
Gutfeld went on to say that he and Jimmy Fallon “genuinely like each other without that other bullsh*t.” Asked whether he’s invited Fallon to his show, Gutfeld said he hasn’t, calling it a “bigger ask” since Gutfeld! guests typically stick around for the full hour. Still, he reminded the Times: “The president did do it, so…”
Gutfeld’s show airs at 9 pm my time (Chicago area) – that’s hardly “late night.” But I understand you have to keep conservatives happy by making believe this is a “late night” show.