Blake Griffin Is Hosting a New Late-Night Show—and the Format Is Not What You Think

Griffin's show will not have guests. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Meet your new late-night host, former NBA All-Star Blake Griffin.

According to an exclusive report from The Hollywood Reporter, the 37-year-old Griffin is launching a weekly late-night show on Prime Video and YouTube titled The Stepback With Blake Griffin.

The show, the first episode of which drops Oct. 20 (the same date as the start of the NBA season), will not be structured like, say, The Tonight Show or Late Night With Seth Meyers. Rather, it will feature Griffin "sitting behind a desk chronicling and opining on the juiciest sports topics of our time—think John Oliver, but for all things athletic," according to THR.

“Drawing on his unique lens as a veteran player, sports dad, and lifelong superfan, Griffin breaks down the biggest topics in sports for a live studio audience—delivering a smart blend of late-night comedy and cultural analysis," reads a piece of a planned press release.

The show will generally not have guests (as is also the case with Oliver's show, Last Week Tonight), and all episodes of the program have already been recorded and are in post-production as we speak. That in mind, it sounds like Griffin will not be commenting on culture live as it happens, but instead exploring certain predetermined topics.

“I’ve watched and idolized shows like The Daily Show and Last Week Tonight, so to follow in their footsteps while putting my own stamp on the genre is an amazing opportunity that I’m grateful to take part in,” Griffin said of the program, per THR.

As any NBA fan is aware, this will not be the five-time All-NBA honoree's first time on television. In addition to the bevy of commercial work he has done over the years, Griffin has also worked as a basketball broadcast analyst, most recently as a member of NBA on Prime. Now, we'll see if he can successfully join the ranks of America's late-night hosts, or, as has been the case with plenty of other athlete-led programming, if this venture will rim out.

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