Trevor Noah Shares “Cheerleader” Jon Stewart’s Reaction to ‘Daily Show’ Emmy Nomination

“Taking over from Jon Stewart is one of the most difficult things I would imagine anybody could do in showbiz. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone,” The Daily Show host Trevor Noah told The Hollywood Reporter following his first Emmy nomination for outstanding shortform variety series since he made his debut on the show in 2015.

For Noah, getting recognition from the Television Academy is “an amazing achievement on a journey that we’ve been on as a show.”

“It’s really exciting that the show as a whole is nominated because it really does feel like every single person in this building has been instrumental and been a part of the success of the show,” Noah explained.

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His Daily Show predecessor, Jon Stewart, who has won his fair share of Emmys during his 16-year run, shared his excitement over the show’s recent nomination, with Noah calling him his “little cheerleader.”

“Jon sent a long text. He was just so happy,” Noah told THR. “Jon’s always been a supporter of mine since the beginning. He’s one of the reasons I sit in this chair and I’m at this desk. He’s always been a little cheerleader in the background, egging me on and just being, ‘Do better. Be better. Enjoy yourself and have a good time.’”

Noah also discussed the current political climate that he reports on night after night, one that he stepped into just prior to the 2016 election, saying, “I was grateful and now I feel like it’s gluttony.”

“I feel like it’s an embarrassment of riches and I think it’s gotten to a point where people are so overwhelmed and it’s almost too much for people to absorb. People want a break and I understand that, and that’s why what we try and do on the show is create context and also try and provide a prism through which we see not just America’s politics but the world.”

He continued: “It’s nice to show people that Trump is not everything, although he is the wildfire that consumes the news. It’s sometimes nice to show that there are other things happening. There are other issues that do not involve him and he is not the be-all-end-all.”