Uh....k
January 21, 2010 - The Wrap broke the news late last night that a deal has finally been signed, ending the relationship between Conan O'Brien and NBC. An NBC spokesperson states that an official announcement will be coming today, giving Conan and NBC time to promote tomorrow's (Friday, Jan. 22) Tonight Show as Conan's last.
The deal is estimated to be worth more than $40 million, with Conan personally receiving about $30 million. A major sticking point for the negotiations has been NBC's severance package for the Tonight Show staffers; it's reported that O'Brien will divert some of his settlement into a fund for exiting staffers.
People close to the deal report that NBC will indeed own the rights to all of the bits and characters that Conan's created at Late Night & Tonight Show for the past 17 years, such as Masturbating Bear and In the Year 3000.
The terms of the deal reportedly state that Conan will be free to go back on television September 1; FOX has reportedly expressed interest.
Update: MSNBC reports that O'Brien's deal actually was for $45 million total. The network offically spoke about the matter on The Today Show this morning. Of that amount, $33 Million is going to O'Brien himself, while the rest is for his staff.
A spokesman for O'Brien said he would be unavailable for comment, notes MSNBC. Obviously there will be quite a lot of attention paid to whoever gets the first interview with O'Brien about this entire situation – We're still crossing our fingers that he goes on Letterman soon! However, The Wrap notes, "O'Brien has agreed to a short period of time in which he can't give any media interviews or slam NBC publicly. NBC has also agreed to a media blackout."
- NBCThe Wrap says that while it is true that NBC will retain ownership of characters and bits O'Brien created while working for them, it is not true that O'Brien won't be able make jokes about NBC down the line -- or will have to pay penalties if he does, should he start a competing talk show.
The Jay Leno Show will remain on the air until February 12th, when the Winter Olympics begin on NBC. When the Olympics end, Leno is expected to return as host of The Tonight Show.
Update 2: NBC has sent out a press release confirming Jay Leno is returning as the host of The Tonight Show, beginning March 1st. The press release makes no mention of Conan O'Brien.
Jeff Gaspin, Chairman, NBC Universal Television Entertainment, says, "We're pleased that Jay is returning to host the franchise that he helmed brilliantly and successfully for many years. He is an enormous talent, a consummate professional and one of the hardest-working performers on television."
For a rundown of Conan's final guests for Thursday and Friday, check out our story from yesterday. You can also listen to IGN TV's latest Channel Surfing podcast for our thoughts on the situation
