MTV Gets in the Late Night Talk Game With Nikki & Sara Live

Chelsea Handler is everyone's favorite late-night funny gal, but she's about to get some comedic competition with two new hosts on Nikki & Sara Live, premiering Tuesday at 11/10c on MTV. "We love Chelsea, but our show will be different," says Nikki Glaser, who will be pairing up with her former podcast cohost, Sarah Schaefer, for their weekly half hour show. What else can audiences expect from these newbies? We got in touch Glaser (a former contestant from NBC's Last Comic Standing) and Schaefer (a two-time Emmy winner for her work on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon) to get the scoop on their new gabbing gig.

TV Guide Magazine: Your show is based off of your podcast, You Had to Be There. Will your show cover similar topics?
Schaefer and Glaser: No!
Glaser: Our podcast covers pretty much everything from our personal lives to pop culture. We talk a lot about sex and have no boundaries — we really go all out. We don't really plan the podcast, we just start talking and it takes us into a million different directions and it's really, at times, inappropriate and X-rated.

TV Guide Magazine: So how will your talk show be different?
Glaser: The talk show is going to be a topical comedy show about pop culture and all things entertainment. We're talking about celebrities, TV and music, and doing it with a comedy slant. We're going to be making jokes with sketches, in-studio pieces, man-on-the-street things and celebrity interviews. We're going to sprinkle in stuff from our personal lives, but it is not going to be the focus.
Schaefer: I think our chemistry and our vibe will come through from our podcast to the TV show.

TV Guide Magazine: Even with the success of your podcast, you are relatively unknown, at this point. How did you land your own talk show?
Schaefer: We had been working on the idea for a couple months, pitched in September of 2011, then MTV decided they wanted to make a pilot so we shot that in January of last year, found out in late May that we got the show and then we started working on it in November. It was a pretty long process but I think it was actually pretty short compared to TV experiences that other people have had.

TV Guide Magazine: You're probably hearing this from a lot of critics, but your show sounds a bit similar to E!'s Chelsea Lately. Why should audiences tune in?
Glaser: We're for a different audience — it's going to be a little bit of a younger demographic. E! is definitely a different vibe than MTV. I'm guessing we'll cover some of the same topics, but the format is going to be completely different. Chelsea [Handler] makes fun of celebrities, but we're going to kind of celebrate them. I mean we're going to make jokes when they deserve it. But it is not our goal to make celebrities feel bad — not that that is her goal, but it's certainly not ours.
Schaefer: We're going to be a little less snarky. Our top priority is to be funny. There's a way to make a joke without being mean for the sake of being mean.

TV Guide Magazine: Speaking of Chelsea Handler, there seems to be a growing trend in late night female talk show hosts. Why is that?
Glaser: Women are staying up later now! Studies have shown women are not going to bed early anymore.
Schaefer: I just think there's a rising that women are funny, authentic and are good at hosting. Talk shows are about relationships and communicating, and women are really good at that.
Glaser: And, I don't mean to make a blanket statement, but as a whole, women care about celebrities more than men.
Schaefer: We're going to provide a show that talks as if we're a bunch of girlfriends. It's the same way women all sit around and watch The Bachelor, screaming at the TV like, 'Look at this crazy bitch trying to win this man!' Women are now huge TV watchers and drive a lot of the ratings at night.

TV Guide Magazine: What else will set your show apart from other late night talk shows?
Glaser: First of all, there are two hosts so that's going to bring a different dynamic to it. It's also for a younger audience so we're going to be covering topics that you're not going to hear Jay Leno talk about — I don't think he's going to talk about what's going on with One Direction.
Schaefer: And our show is 100 percent live.
Glaser: Yes, that too. We're not taping at 5 o'clock. We are taping at 11 o'clock, and you are seeing it in your living room at 11 o' clock.

TV Guide Magazine: You're filming in the old TRL studios. Is it surreal to be shooting in such an iconic space?
Schaefer: It's very exciting and surreal to be in that studio. We're getting a little more used to it, but you still get that flutter in your stomach.
Glaser: Times Square is right there! We're in the middle of it so we hope to tap into that energy and excitement that was there when TRL was around.

TV Guide Magazine: I bet the live audience provides a ton of that energy.
Schaefer: Yeah it feels like a party!
Glaser: It's really exciting to have a bunch of screaming teens, and it's nice to perform for a crowd because our backgrounds are in standup so we feed off that energy.

TV Guide Magazine: Who are some of the celebrities we'll be seeing as guests on your show?
Schaefer: Our first guest on the premiere is Ke$ha, which we're really excited about. That's all we can share right now, but I think that's a great start.

TV Guide Magazine: Will more of the celebrity interviews be with musicians since you're on MTV?
Glaser: They don't have to just be in music. We're going to have actors and reality stars and you name it.
Schaefer: I think Ke$ha is a perfect guest for MTV. It makes sense. But MTV covers so much now.
Glaser: We just want it to be as fun as possible. We'll try to just book guests that are going to be a fun time.

TV Guide Magazine: Who is your dream guest to interview on your show?
Glaser: Definitely Taylor Swift. And Justin Timberlake, Beyonce and Zac Efron.
Schaefer: I love Zac Efron too, but Nikki kind of has more of a thing for him than I do.

TV Guide Magazine: You mentioned reality stars. Will we be seeing the queens of MTV, Snooki and JWoss?
Glaser: Hopefully. We love them!

Check out this man-on-the-street clip from Nikki & Sara Live:

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