'This definitely ain't forever' for Jon Stewart
NEW YORK — As you may or may not have heard, Jon Stewart's contract as the voice and host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show is up next year.
And, yes, he's been asked once or twice or 900 times what he plans on doing next.
"So far, that has not come up," Stewart, 51, deadpans, in the Daily Show offices on the Far West Side. "This could be scoop time. Spoiler alert. My mind-set is, this definitely ain't forever, that's for sure."
That being said, Stewart adds, "I don't think I have a tremendous amount of clarity. The reserves are somewhat burnt right now. You tend to begin to burn muscle at a certain point. You don't want to make decisions when you hit the wall in the marathon. I want to make a decision when I'm not cramping."
He's not one to bemoan anything in his life, but Stewart has reason to be depleted. He fronted Comedy Central's election coverage while also promoting his directorial debut, Rosewater, which opens Friday in select cities. Given Stewart's gloriously acerbic TV persona, his movie is a surprisingly sweet, inspiring and heartfelt tale of Maziar Bahari, a Newsweek reporter held captive in Iran on suspicion of being a spy. Stewart left his Daily Show desk for 12 weeks last year to helm the film in Jordan.
"He's really looking for his voice in cinema, for a way to express himself," says Gael Garcia Bernal, who plays Bahari. "He was risking just putting himself out there very strongly in the film."
Not so much, demurs Stewart, when asked if his fame was a help or hindrance in getting the film released.
"One of the most difficult things about projects, good or bad, is getting them in front of people.," he says. "Without that higher profile, we could have had a tougher time just getting it made.
"I'll take whatever negative backlash based on people's feelings — as long as we got to make the movie we wanted to make."