Amy Schumer Admits She Cried After Being Offered ‘Daily Show’ Hosting Gig

Comedian discussed the job with Jon Stewart over a slice of pizza

June 30, 2015
Photo: The Howard Stern Show

How famous has Amy Schumer become since coming on the Stern Show early in her career? According to reports, she was up for Jon Stewart’s job as the host of “The Daily Show.” Last week the Daily Beast revealed Amy was on the shortlist of comedians considered for the Comedy Central series alongside the likes of Chris Rock and Amy Poehler. Though Schumer ultimately turned down the gig, the “Trainwreck” star opened up to Howard Stern Tuesday morning about how much it meant to her.

First, Schumer wanted to clarify the only reason she copped to being offered the job was because she realized the news was going to come out, therefor she had no reason to lie about it.

Howard wondered how she would have fit in on the show considering politics hasn’t played into her comedy routines as of yet. “You’re not the type of person who keeps up with current events — that’s not you’re gig, right?” Howard asked.

“In my private life, yeah,” Amy said. Even so, she didn’t think it was the right job for her. “I think if I heard that I was hosting ‘The Daily Show,’ I’d be like, ‘Oh give me a fucking break,'” she explained. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t entertain the idea at first. “Them asking me, like, made me cry. That means so much to me that they believed in me like that,” Schumer told Howard.

The offer process was more or less informal. “I hung with Jon Stewart for a little bit and talked … We had a piece of pizza and talked about the possibility of me hosting … I was kind of fantasizing about it like — oh then my brother [who is a jazz musician in Chicago] and my whole family could work there and everyone will get paid well. We’ll have this little, like, commune,” she imagined.

In the end though, Amy couldn’t come to terms with a few details. “[J]ust picturing being in the same building every day … I just pictured all of the fittings, like all of the blazers I would have to wear. And I was like, ‘I don’t want to do that.'”

“Trevor will be so much better at it than I could’ve ever been,” she added.

The fact that Amy was offered ‘The Daily Show’ is not a big surprise considering the incredible wave she’s been riding lately. Amy was recently offered the opening slot on Madonna’s three arena shows – two at Madison Square Garden, one at Brooklyn’s Barclay’s Center – by the Queen of Pop herself. Amy, naturally, took the gig and is excited about it, though she can’t imagine anyone in the crowd will be excited to see her. She is standing between them and Madonna, after all.

Chris Rock is the one who gave Madonna Amy’s contact info (at Madonna’s request) and that’s not all Rock had done for her this year. He also directed her upcoming HBO comedy special.

Amy can handle herself around the incredibly famous, as evidenced by her intentionally falling in front of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West at the Time 100 Most Influential People gala.

But one thing she had some trouble handing were her emotions as she thanked Howard for having her on the show. Director Judd Apatow heard Amy on the Stern Show and thought she had a movie in her. Thus, her sure-to-be-a-hit “Trainwreck” was born – written by and starring Amy, directed by Judd.

Check out Amy Schumer’s movie “Trainwreck” in theaters July 17.