In his first post-Tonight Show interview, a bearded Conan O’Brien sat down with 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft.
Despite a non-disparagement agreement with NBC, O’Brien still managed to make his feelings about the network and Jay Leno clear.
Regarding discussions with NBC prior to his split with the network, Conan tells Kroft, “It just felt like the tone went very quickly from, ‘Take your time, we understand this is a tough decision,’ to– you know, ‘Let’s go.’ And that probably helped me a little bit feel like, you know what? This environment doesn’t feel right, and I’ve been with these people a long time. And I don’t like– I really don’t like the way this is going. And when it started to get toxic and I started to feel that I’m not sure these– people even really want me here. Let’s just– let’s just– I can’t do it.
During a clip from his nationwide comedy tour, O’Brien quips, “Doing this tour is a huge milestone for me. This is the first time anyone has ever paid to see me… oh they’ve paid to make me go away,” referencing his $32 million settlement.
When asked if he thought Leno acted honorably, Conan said “I don’t think I can answer that. I don’t think– I can just tell you maybe how I would have handled it. And I would do it differently.”
“If I had surrendered The Tonight Show and handed it over to somebody publicly and wished them well– and then– I don’t– would not have come back six months later. But that’s me, you know. Everyone’s got their own, you know, way of doing things,” he continued.
“What would you have done?” Kroft asks.
“Done something else, go someplace else. I mean, that’s just me,” O’Brien responds.
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