TV Ratings: James Corden’s ‘Late Late Show’ Ends on Up Note

The star-studded final episode of The Late Late Show With James Corden delivered a big ratings boost.

Thursday’s installment, the last of Corden’s eight-year run at CBS, brought in 1.43 million viewers in its 12:35 a.m. timeslot, based on fast national ratings from Nielsen. That’s a 77 percent jump from The Late Late Show’s season average of 806,000 viewers and the largest audience for Corden’s show since it aired following the NFL’s AFC Championship game in January 2021.

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A Carpool Karaoke primetime special at 10 p.m. drew 3.65 million people, up from 2.77 million for the last primetime special (in May 2019) featuring the recurring Late Late Show segment. Fast national ratings don’t include out of home viewing, which could push the above figures up a bit.

The final Late Late Show featured Harry Styles and Will Ferrell as in-studio guests, Corden joining Tom Cruise to play Timon and Pumbaa in a performance of The Lion King at L.A.’s Pantages Theatre, and the last Carpool Karaoke segment with Adele. The latter has amassed more than 13 million views on YouTube since it posted on Monday.

“I will always be genuinely blown away that this was something that I ever even got asked to do,” Corden told The Hollywood Reporter during a final tour of his Television City set and office. “I don’t look like I should be hosting a late night talk show. I’m not a broadcaster. And I’ve never done a stand-up set in my life.”

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