James Corden reveals why he’s leaving The Late Late Show on The Drew Barrymore Show

While his final episode of The Late Late Show is still not fully set at this time, James Corden is opening up about why he’s leaving the late night talk show.

The comedian, 44, announced in late April that he was quitting the talk show in mid-2023, and it was later reported to be many months before his contract expires in August 2023.

The British star appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show on Monday, where he was asked why he was leaving the CBS talk show after what will be eight years on the air.

Corden recalled a story from two summers ago when he was shooting his Amazon Prime Video series Mammals, and an interaction with his son, Max, who was 10 at the time.

The chat show host was filming on a Sunday and Max’s ‘face dropped’ when he said he was working that day, prompting him to realize he ‘cannot waste another summer’ where his son wants to hang out with him.

Why: While his final episode of The Late Late Show is still not fully set at this time, James Corden is opening up about why he’s leaving the late night talk show

Opening up: The British star appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show on Monday, where he was asked why he was leaving the CBS talk show after what will be eight years on the air

‘Look it’s not easy in any way to walk away from something that is so… I mean I’ll never work in a better environment than the one I work in now,’ Corden began. 

‘Nothing about leaving the show was to do with not enjoying it. I love it, but the truth is it became a very easy decision because I always knew it was an adventure and I never ever considered it to be the final destination,’ he added.

Corden – who has three children, Max, 11, Carey, eight, and Charlotte, five, with wife Julia – recalled a story from two summers ago,, which featured a poignant interaction with Max.

‘I was filming on a Sunday and I came downstairs, it was about six a.m. and my son, who was ten at the time, was sat on the stairs and he said, “Are you working today?” and I said, “I am”. 

Doting dad: The British star has three children, Max, 11, Carey, eight, and Charlotte, five, with wife Julia (pictured together in 2019)

Not easy: Corden recalled a story from two summers ago when he was shooting his Amazon Prime Video series Mammals, and an interaction with his son, Max, who was 10 at the time

‘He said, “I thought, well it’s Sunday,” and I said, “I know buddy but this schedule’s just all over the place. 

‘We just got to get it done because we only have a tiny amount of time before we have to go back and do the show,” and his face just kind of dropped,’ Corden said.

‘I got in the car and I called my wife Jules and I said, “I’ve realized, best case scenario we have six more summers where Max is like, even remotely wants to be around us and I cannot waste another one,”‘ Corden explained. 

‘So, really the choice was to go, “Well if I really want to do this other work, that cannot be at the expensive of our children, our family,” and that is really all it comes down to,’ Corden added.

The real story: The chat show host was filming on a Sunday and Max’s ‘face dropped’ when he said he was working that day, prompting him to realize he ‘cannot waste another summer’

Explained: ‘I got in the car and I called my wife Jules and I said, “I’ve realized, best case scenario we have six more summers where Max is like, even remotely wants to be around us’

He admitted, ‘I will be a mess on that last show. 

‘I will cry my eyes out but I will know at my core that the best thing for me and the best thing for us as a family is to put down some roots in London, and it feels absolutely right in every single way.’

Corden started his career in the U.K. on hit sitcoms such as Fat Friends and Gavin & Stacey, which he co-created with co-star Ruth Jones. 

He also created and starred in The Wrong Mans in 2013 and appeared in the Disney musical Into the Woods in 2014 before he landed The Late Late Show gig in 2015.

He has continued to work regularly on the big screen while still hosting The Late Late Show, with roles in Trolls, Peter Rabbit, Ocean’s Eight, Cats and Cinderella.

He also created the 2020 game show Game On, an American version of the British game show A League Of Their Own.

Corden currently stars in Amazon Prime Video’s Mammals, a six-episode series that debuted in November thought it’s unclear if it will be renewed. 

His career and reputation seemingly took a hit back in October, when Keith McNally, owner of famed New York City restaurant Balthazar, banned him from the restaurant, calling him a, ‘a tiny cretin of a man’ and ‘the most abusive customer.’

Corden was allegedly banned for ‘yelling like crazy’ at a server who got his wife’s egg yolk omelette wrong.

Corden insisted he told the server to send the omelette back because his wife is allergic to egg white, but he says he told her, ‘But don’t worry if you can’t manage it.’

‘It’s been the most surreal moment. I mean, it’s so odd. I never screamed at anyone, I didn’t shout, didn’t call anyone a name or swear or use derogatory language. … How is it remotely a thing?’ Corden said in an interview with The Times.

New series: Corden currently stars in Amazon Prime Video’s Mammals, a six-episode series that debuted in November thought it’s unclear if it will be renewed