James Corden has opened up about his difficult decision to step down as host of the US talk show.
Towards the end of last year, the Gavin & Stacey star announced he’d be hanging up his microphone and leaving his job as host of The Late Late Show after eight years at the helm.
He fronted his final star-studded episode last week, and during a recent interview with Howard Stern on Sirius XM, admitted that a desire to be close to his family in the UK was a huge factor in his decision.
“There are people at home who are getting older,” the Carpool Karaoke creator explained.
“And we really felt that during Covid, there were a couple of health things that came along that made us just feel like… there were too many signs telling us to go home.”
He continued: “If I allow myself to think about the financial aspects of walking away, it makes my chest tight – because I get it, why would you do such a thing? But the truth is, [I want] time with my parents. To be able to call my dad on a Thursday and go, ‘do you want to go for lunch?’, that is a feeling that I’ll never ever ever get back.
“And one day… the time’s going to come, and it’s not up to us when that is, but the phone’s going to ring and that option is not going to be there any more. And to have missed out on those moments in exchange for money doesn’t feel like a good decision.”
James – who shares an 11-year-old son and eight-year-old and five-year-old daughters with his wife Julia – added that his children’s futures were also something to consider.
“To move 14, 15, 16-year-olds around felt unfair. So if we were going to stay, we’d be in Los Angeles for 20 years,” he said.
“The absolute crux of the decision is, ‘Where do we want to raise these people we brought into the world?’”
Earlier this year, James revealed an emotional exchange he had with his son that led to him choosing to walk away from The Late, Late Show.