14 former employees of ‘The Tonight Show’ have accused host Jimmy Fallon of displaying “erratic” behavior including being drunk or severely hungover.

“Nobody told Jimmy, ‘No.’ Everybody walked on eggshells, especially showrunners,” a former employee told the Rolling Stone. “You never knew which Jimmy we were going to get and when he was going to throw a hissy fit. Look how many showrunners went so quickly. We know they didn’t last long.”

Two employees told the publication that Fallon seemed drunk at work in 2017. On separate occasions in 2019 and 2020, another pair of workers claimed to have smelled alcohol on the host’s breath in an elevator.

Also Read | Who is Chris Alan, Timothée Chalamet puppet creator for Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show?

Ex-staffers described the show as a tense and “pretty glum atmosphere” where some were bullied and belittled by bosses including Fallon.

Is Jimmy Fallon an alcoholic?

There have been gossip about Fallon’s relationship with alcohol over the years. There have been gossip about Fallon’s relationship with alcohol. In 2016, the New York Post published a story where NBC executives were concerned about Fallon’s drinking. In a New York Times profile published in 2017, Fallon denied the rumors saying, “I could never do a day-to-day job if I was drinking every night. That’s just kicking you when you’re down.”

However, eight former employees, who had experienced Fallon’s behavior first hand behind the scenes on his show suggested that the hist’s mood fluctuated depending on if he appeared to be hungover from the night before. 

“When something was wrong, we all knew how to behave afterward, which was just sort of avoid eye contact and don’t make another mistake,” one former staffer said. “It would happen over the smallest thing… We would have to shut the whole thing down, the sketch isn’t happening, and when things like that would happen, you would just beat yourself up.”

NBC commented on the report of toxic work environment at it’s late-night program without directly defending the host of the show.

Also Read | RIP Jimmy Fallon trends on Twitter, social media flooded with memes

“We are incredibly proud of ‘The Tonight Show,’ and providing a respectful working environment is a top priority,” a network spokesperson said in a statement. “As in any workplace, we have had employees raise issues; those have been investigated and action has been taken where appropriate. As is always the case, we encourage employees who feel they have experienced or observed behavior inconsistent with our policies to report their concerns so that we may address them accordingly.”