The changing face of late night

Comedian Trevor Noah will succeed Jon Stewart as host of "The Daily Show" after Stewart steps down this year.

The changing face of late night

James Corden took over "The Late Late Show" in March. The Tony winner and movie actor ("Into the Woods") replaced Craig Ferguson, who left the show in December. The face of late-night TV has changed considerably in recent years as many longtime hosts have moved on to other things. Here's a look at the leading players.

The changing face of late night

With his barbed jokes about political hypocrisy, Jon Stewart has won enormous acclaim over his 15-plus years hosting "The Daily Show." He announced in February that he will leave the Comedy Central fake-news program this year to focus on other projects.

The changing face of late night

Stephen Colbert, a former "Daily Show" correspondent, took opinionated cable news network hosts' me-first, confrontational style and parodied it mercilessly on "The Colbert Report." He'll be replacing David Letterman on the "Late Show" September 8.

The changing face of late night

Larry Wilmore took over Colbert's Comedy Central slot with "The Nightly Show," which premiered in January. Prior to "Nightly," Wilmore was the "Daily Show's" "senior black correspondent."

The changing face of late night

John Oliver, another former "Daily Show" correspondent, went to HBO for his "Last Week Tonight" and has gained acclaim for his in-depth -- and still humorous -- looks at such issues as the Miss America pageant and Internet neutrality.

The changing face of late night

Jimmy Fallon took over the "Tonight Show" from Jay Leno in 2014, and unlike the previous hand-off -- between Leno and Conan O'Brien -- the transition went very smoothly. Fallon has brought in a younger audience, and his bits often go viral.

The changing face of late night

Jimmy Kimmel oversees ABC's late-night show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live," which has gained popularity for such bits as "Mean Tweets" and his alleged triangle with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

The changing face of late night

Conan O'Brien took over Letterman's NBC "Late Night" spot when Letterman departed for CBS and hosted the "Tonight Show" for about seven months in 2009. After leaving NBC, he joined TBS (like CNN, a part of Time Warner) and has been hosting "Conan" there since 2010.

The changing face of late night

Seth Meyers hosts "Late Night" on NBC. The show was taken over by Fallon after O'Brien left, and Meyers -- a former "Saturday Night Live" writer and "Weekend Update" anchor -- started hosting it in early 2014.

The changing face of late night