TV funnyman Jay Leno is “furious” with how NBC has treated him and Conan O’Brien and is reportedly considering walking away from the network.
A day after O’Brien threatened to walk away from NBC, Leno is considering doing the same.
“They have put Jay in a terrible position. It looks like he is the reason that Conan is now without a job. Jay is a great guy and it’s not fair that due to NBC’s stupidity he looks like the bad guy,” a TV insider told the celebrity blog PopEater today.
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“Plus, what happens when Jay does return to the 11:35 slot if his audience doesn’t immediately follow? How can he possibly trust the same network that canceled Conan after only seven months?”
A Leno spokesman denied the report.
The report comes a day after O’Brien broke down in tears while reading to his writing staff his 553-word statement that he no longer wants to host the “The Tonight Show” if it’s moved to midnight, an insider told The Post.
With Conan out of the picture, Leno would take back “The Tonight Show” by March 1, if not sooner, after NBC decided to scrap his 10 p.m. show.
The statement effectively ends Conan’s 16-year affiliation with NBC, several insiders said.
“There are people at NBC who are pissed off and will say, ‘Fine, if you want to be a s – – -head, just go away already,’ ” one agent said.
Meanwhile, NBC local TV newscasts airing after “The Jay Leno Show” have seen ratings declined by 25 percent among key viewers, which is costing NBC stations $22 million every three months.
Media agency Harmelin Media said local TV newscasts across 210 markets lost one-quarter of their respective adult 25 to 54 viewership, the main viewer group for TV news advertisers because of Leno.