Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show staff reveal ‘toxic’ culture, say Fallon seems drunk on set
Sixteen Jimmy Fallon Show employees, fourteen former and two current, have criticised US TV show host Fallon’s behaviour on set while filming popular late-night show The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
They claim that his on-set behaviour differed depending on whether or not he seemed to be drunk, and that the show is a “toxic” workplace environment, according to an investigation by Rolling Stone.
Staffers told the title that the show harbours a “pretty glum atmosphere,” that they were belittled and intimidated and that the show host had “outbursts” on set. He also displayed “unexpected, inconsistent behaviour.”
Staffers said they joked about taking their own lives because of the way they were treated on the show. Out of 50 staffers approached, no one agreed to have their name published, and no one had anything positive to say about working on the Jimmy Fallon Show, say the title.
It was common to hear staff joking about “wanting to kill themselves,” and guest dressing rooms reportedly doubled as “crying rooms” for staffers who needed to get away and find some privacy.
Fallon allegedly told staff their work was “lame” in passive-aggressive emails and would offer personal insults rather than helpful feedback. He also would “scold” crew members over issues with cue cards, such as in the middle of a now infamous taping with Jerry Seinfield were Fallon flipped at a crew member and Seinfeld told him to apologise.
“It was very awkward, and Jerry [Seinfeld] was like, ‘You should apologize to him,’ almost trying to make it a joke,” a former employee told Rolling Stone. “It was one of the strangest moments ever and so many people were there, so it’s kind of hard to forget.”
Fallon began presenting NBC’s Late Night With Jimmy Fallon in 2009 following successful stints on Saturday Night Live and in Hollywood movies. It averages between 3 and 4 million episodic viewers, beating competition from popular rivals like Jimmy Kimmel and David Letterman.
No representatives would go on record to comment directly about Fallon’s behaviour to Rolling Stone. However they did go on record to comment on the treatment on staff on the show.
They said: “We are incredibly proud of The Tonight Show, and providing a respectful working environment is a top priority. As in any workplace, we have had employees raise issues; those have been investigated and action has been taken where appropriate. As is always the case, we encourage employees who feel they have experienced or observed behavior inconsistent with our policies to report their concerns so that we may address them accordingly.”