Alec Baldwin Gets His Own Talk Show on MSNBC; Launch Set for October [VIDEO]
Alec Baldwin will be hosting a talk show about current events and culture for MSNBC, the network announced today.
The show, titled Up Late w/Alec Baldwin, is scheduled to premiere in October and will air every Friday at 10 p.m.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Baldwin was in talks with MSNBC for a prime-time show. After his seven-year run with NBC's 30 Rock, the network kept Baldwin in the fold by having him sign a two-year overall deal last year.
The network had been trying to find a suitable role for the actor since then, and he was being considered for a late night talk show. The possibility of him taking over NBC's 1:35 a.m. slot which was occupied by Last Call with Carson Daly.
The prospect of Baldwin hosting a talk show also came up when the Republican National Committee disapproved of NBC's plans to air a mini-series about Hilary Clinton. After NBC's White House news correspondent Chuck Todd also suggested that the Clinton miniseries would be a very bad idea for MSNBC, the NBC-affiliated network decided to drop the project.
Here's NBC's official announcement about Baldwin's show:
"NEW YORK - September 5, 2013 - Award-winning actor, activist and philanthropist Alec Baldwin will join MSNBC as the host of a new weekly current events and culture talk show to air Fridays from 10-11 p.m. ET. "Up Late w/Alec Baldwin" will begin this October. The announcement was made today by Phil Griffin, President of MSNBC.
"After two seasons of my WNYC podcast, I've developed a fondness for hosting a show that involved talking with smart, talented and engaging people in every imaginable field," said Baldwin. "I'm grateful to MSNBC for helping me bring a similar show to television."
"I've been talking with Alec for a while and can't wait to bring his personality and eclectic interests to MSNBC," said Griffin. "He's got such passion for ideas and what's going on in the world - he's going to be a great addition to our line-up."
Alec Baldwin and his wife Hilaria Thomas welcomed a baby daughter, Carmen, last month.
First Photos of Carmen Revealed.
Watch a video of Baldwin discussing the state of the GOP in the 2012 Presidential Elections on MSNBC's The Last Word:
