David Letterman Stuns Audience With First 'Tonight Show' Appearance In Decades (2025)

Late night TV legend David Letterman made a surprise appearance on NBC’s “Tonight Show” on Monday night during host Jimmy Fallon’s opening monologue.

It was Letterman’s first appearance on the show since 1992, when Johnny Carson was host.

Letterman’s longtime sidekick and band, Paul Shaffer and the World’s Most Dangerous Band, were on the show filling in for Fallon’s house band, The Roots, which is rehearsing for Friday night’s “Saturday Night Live” 50th anniversary concert.

In the middle of a bit, the band kicked into Letterman’s old theme song as he emerged from behind the curtain looking lost.

“Jimmy!” he exclaimed in mock shock. “Paul? What are you doing here?”

“You know, it’s a funny story,” Shaffer said. “Have you ever taken too much Ambien and then you wake up somewhere with no clue how the hell you got there?”

“Wow, you’ve been reading my diary,” Letterman said.

He spent about five minutes on the set messing around with Fallon:

Letterman began his late night TV career at NBC, where he hosted the groundbreaking “Late Night With David Letterman” from 1982 to 1993. The show followed Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show.” When Carson announced in 1991 that he would retire the following year, it was widely expected that Letterman would take over the earlier slot.

NBC hired Jay Leno instead, and Letterman defected to CBS for a show at the same hour, leading to a decadeslong rivalry.

Leno signed off for good in 2014, while Letterman retired the following year.

Letterman, who had appeared on “The Tonight Show” dozens of times when Carson was host, never appeared on the show again ― until this week.