'Carpool Karaoke' TV show? How viral clips are taking over late-night

More celebrities may be taking to the road to show off their singing skills.

James Corden, host of CBS’s “Late Late Show,” and executive producer Ben Winston are reportedly attempting to turn the recurring segment “Carpool Karaoke” into its own show. 

Mr. Corden debuted as host of the program, replacing Craig Ferguson, about a year ago. Since then, the karaoke segment has become a hit online, with the most-viewed iteration, involving Adele, drawing more than 84 million views. A segment with Justin Bieber brought in more than 66 million views. 

According to Billboard, Corden wouldn’t host the show but would probably pop up on the program periodically. 

The “lip sync battle” portion of NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” has already received similar treatment, with the TV show “Lip Sync Battle” becoming a hit for network Spike and drawing such celebrities as Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Taraji P. Henson.

These viral segments have become one attempt to bring late-night franchises into the Internet age. Mr. Fallon’s program in particular has become known for portions involving celebrities participating in games or activities, with some of the other most-viewed videos on the “Tonight” YouTube channel including actor Daniel Radcliffe rapping and Christina Aguilera impersonating other musicians. 

Chris Osterndorf of Salon writes that Fallon has succeeded in attracting younger viewers, something broadcast networks always want to do. 

“There are several different ways late night TV has used viral videos to attract said younger demographic, but Jimmy Fallon takes the cake in this regard,” Mr. Osterndforf writes. “Tonight” is currently the highest-rated late-night show. 

Wall Street writer John Jurgensen notes that the time after an episode is now almost as important, if not more so, than the episode itself. “Increasingly, late-night is a morning-after industry,” Mr. Jurgensen writes.

An emphasis placed on fun viral bits could mean a move away from the interviews of the past, however. Bill Carter of the Hollywood Reporter writes of Fallon’s success and Stephen Colbert’s performance as host of CBS’s “Late Show,” “Colbert placed an early emphasis on serious interviews, like his memorable exchange with Joe Biden, but the focus of late seems to be shifting away from talk and toward performance. Fallon is the obvious center of that movement … Fallon attracts sniping mainly for the lack of edge he brings to interactions with guests … But he makes no apologies: That is not the type of show he is doing, he says. Plenty of serious talk shows exist elsewhere, and clearly a sizable audience has no issue with the emphasis on energized entertainment.”