DETROIT – Jimmy Fallon is taking The Tonight Show on the road, and for the first time, it’s coming to Detroit.
The late-night host sat down with me ahead of Sunday’s taping at the Detroit Opera House, sharing his excitement about the city, its food, and of course, the Detroit Lions.
“The energy here is crazy. I mean, it’s buzzing. This whole town is buzzing,” Fallon said as we sat atop the historic Detroit Opera House on Sunday afternoon. “We got the Lions playing, man, you came on the perfect day. I’m gonna give the win for the Lions.”
The Lions thrashed Ben Johnson and his Chicago Bears 52-21 inside Ford Field on Sunday (Sept. 14).
Fallon said he has wasted no time exploring Detroit’s food scene.
“I had one of the best burgers I’ve ever had last night in my life. I went to Miller’s Bar in Dearborn,” Fallon said. “And then Buddy’s last night too — Detroit style pizza. Oh my gosh, Buddy’s pizza, and I wanted to eat the whole pie.”
Fallon added, “Detroit, you got some nice, great food, great, great people, great vibes out there, I want to move here.”
The Motor City episode is made possible through Fallon’s ongoing partnership with Ford Motor Company.
“We’ve been doing a lot of fun stuff with Ford. They’re our partner, and so they were thinking, what big thing can we do? And I go, let’s do the show from Detroit,” Fallon said. “Thanks to the great people at Ford, they flew all of us out. We’re jamming. It’s gonna be a fun party.”
Monday’s (Sept. 15) show will feature Keegan-Michael Key, Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham, and musical guests Common with The Roots and Bilal.
Fallon hinted at surprises, including some pre-taped bits with the Lions.
“This is a love letter to Detroit and all the great people that make this town what it is and keep it what it is,” Fallen said. “If you haven’t been to Detroit in a while, come to Detroit, you’re going to freak out how beautiful it is.”
Choosing the Detroit Opera House as the venue was no accident.
“It’s an iconic venue for Detroit. The Opera House is the spot that we had to do the show,” Fallon said. “It might be one of the most beautiful sets we’ve ever made. It’s going to be one of the best Tonight Shows we’ve ever done.”
Fallon, who is also a father of two daughters, shared a playful “girl dad” story during his visit — a whipped cream prank courtesy of his 11-year-old.
But he made it clear that next time, he wants to bring his family with him to experience Detroit.
“I definitely want to be back,” Fallon said. “Hopefully, we come back and we do this more often. I’m putting the vibes out. Go Lions!”
You can watch the full interview below:
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