After a daunting downturn in late-night television, comedian George Lopez is preparing for his shot to take over as king of late night with his upcoming show, “Lopez Tonight.”

The show, premiering Nov. 9 on TBS, intends to appeal to younger audiences and will showcase more of a party atmosphere than the typical talk show. With no desk, city skyline poster or cue cards, Lopez is opting for a casual club vibe instead.

He is eager to prove his new show as a standout amongst other hosts such as Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien, David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel.

“We’re going to ... pick up the pace of what has been traditional and then everything that they’ve done, try not to do that,” Lopez said in a conference call with the Wheel.

Despite opposing time slots and networks, Lopez does not consider any other late-night hosts as competition.

“Being of a different ethnicity and a different comedic approach, I don’t think we’re going after the same audience. I don’t think that there’s an African-American audience or a Latino audience that’s watching Conan O’Brien that he has to worry about me taking,” Lopez said.

Some of the other late-night hosts have graciously welcomed him into their league. Craig Ferguson invited Lopez to appear as a guest on his show and Jimmy Fallon sent Lopez a comical card advising him to start catching some Z’s in preparation for the hectic scheduling of nightly talk show.

Lopez said that the show would feature a diverse repertoire of celebrities and musical guests so “you can see somebody you like and somebody that you’ve never heard of in the same show.” Celebrities like Ellen DeGeneres, Marc Antony and Taylor Lautner have already been scheduled to appear within the first weeks.
Taking advantage of the show’s existence on a cable station rather than network television, he elaborated that the language and content are sure to be more risqué than that on the standard talk show.

There will also be a lot more audience interaction beyond the typical forced applause of most talk shows. For instance, audience members will have the opportunity to ask questions to the celebrity guests appearing on each episode.

Additionally, during the finale every night, the members of the audience will be invited to join Lopez onstage and dance as the host bids his goodnights.

“I love that aspect of a late-night show … that the party looks like it’s continuing,” he said.

Despite his unwavering excitement for the upcoming series, he has already begun to feel the heat of critics who are unsure if Lopez is the cure to the dwindling success of late-night TV.

Other critics are doubtful about the success of a talk show with a Latino as the frontrunner. In reaction to one of Leno’s recent monologues portraying Latinos primarily as illegal immigrants, Lopez said, “We’re Supreme Court justices and the Secretary of Labor and Secretary of the Interior and doctors and lawyers and illegal immigrants and not just that.”

He confessed that he has felt the pressure of predictions of the show’s failure but that he is confident in the diversity and freshness “Lopez Tonight” will offer as he plans to “keep it more legitimate with real celebrities and a more eclectic mix of color than you might necessarily see on late-night TV.”

Entertaining commercials and promotions for “Lopez Tonight” have popped up on the network, including a special advertisement featuring none other than President Obama encouraging the comedian to transform the stereotypical talk show.

Lopez explained that he has had a personal relationship with the president since the beginning of his campaign, as Lopez actively lobbied to help Obama gain the Latino vote. They filmed the ad while Obama was still campaigning and kept it on hold until after the election.

“The greatest part of knowing the president and asking him to be in a promo for a show that hasn’t aired yet was the fact that he said, ‘George, I want you to change late night ’cause that’s change I can believe in.’ Nobody’s been able to pull that one off,” Lopez said.

Tune in to see Lopez take the stage on “Lopez Tonight,” Mondays through Thursday at 11 p.m. on TBS as he proves he is ready to be king.

— Contact Sara Hagey.