John Oliver made up for lost time as Last Week Tonight returned on Sunday, allowing the late-night TV host an opportunity to join his colleagues in covering the Donald Trump-Jeffrey Epstein story. And like the rest of late-night, Last Week Tonight isn't going to let this story go anytime soon.
Oliver was back on the air on July 27 after a month away. The comedian tried to catch up on all the stories he missed, including adding more commentary on Paramount's decision to cancel The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. But for Oliver, the biggest story was still President Donald Trump's history with Jeffrey Epstein.
Oliver's monologue highlighted how far Trump has gone to bury the story ... and how eager late-night TV is to keep digging it back up. Last Week Tonight responded to clips of Trump instructing Republicans to ignore any Epstein questions, with Oliver joking, “Yeah, it’s that easy, and if they keep asking, say Hillary [Clinton] shot JFK, Rosie O’Donnell did 9/11 and Nancy Pelosi f***ed a bat, that’s how we got COVID. No further questions.”
The comedian also hammered Trump over a Wall Street Journal report that found the president signed a birthday book for Epstein with a lewd drawing and references to a "wonderful secret." It's the same story Jimmy Kimmel referenced when he clapped back after Trump suggested ABC would cancel Jimmy Kimmel Live! next.
That overlap points to a common thread in the genre right now. Late-night TV hosts have always had a united front when it comes to covering Donald Trump. Russian collusion, January 6, and the pandemic are just some of the topics on which Oliver, Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, and others have relentlessly criticized Trump. The Jefferey Epstein story feels a little different as shows across the board refuse to let up or seemingly let a night go by without referencing it.
Last week, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert spent multiple monologues discussing Trump's efforts to distance himself from Epstein, only to have those attempts fall flat. Colbert has even more motivation to go after Trump in the wake of CBS dropping The Late Show. It's clear that the Epstein story is where the comedian wants to focus his energy.
The same has been happening on NBC. Jimmy Fallon, recently branded a "moron" by President Trump, isn't shying away from the story either. He reminded Tonight Show audiences that Trump's name is in the Epstein files and the two had a close friendship for years. Seth Meyers joined in on Late Night, spending two editions of "A Closer Look" examining Trump-Epstein connections.
Josh Johnson spent his first week hosting The Daily Show by running down the list of Trump supporters now turning their backs on the president over the Epstein story. The group includes the infamous "QAnon Shaman," something John Oliver made sure to mention during Last Week Tonight.
So if it sounds like late-night TV is especially repetitive lately, there's a pretty simple explanation. President Trump seems more eager to bury the Epstein story than any other scandal or controversy he's faced. Late-night is feeding off that, and the hosts are doing whatever they can to keep the story from dropping out of the news cycle.