Strike Force Five

Strike Force Five is a limited series podcast hosted by American comedians and talk show hosts Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver. Running 12 episodes from August 30 to October 10, 2023, it was created to support the five hosts' employees who were out of work due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.

Upon its debut, Strike Force Five hit the top charts on Spotify and Apple in the United States. The podcast received positive to mixed reviews, with many critics praising the cause but also commenting on the uneven quality of the podcast.

Background
On May 2, 2023, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), representing 11,500 screenwriters, went on strike over an ongoing labor dispute with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). Production for many shows employing WGA members was immediately halted, including the hosts' respective talk shows, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Stephen Colbert suggested that the hosts keep in touch more during the strike, citing poor communication among the late-night hosts during the last writers' strike in 2008 as one of the reasons. The hosts began having weekly Zoom meetings to discuss the strike, which eventually led to Kimmel creating the podcast named after their personal text chain. The podcast would be provided by Megaphone and proceeds would go to the hosts' employees, who were out of work because of the strike.

Post-debut
On September 13, it was announced that Fallon, Kimmel, and Colbert would be performing together in a one-night-only live show called "Strike Force Three" at the Dolby Live theater in Las Vegas on September 23. Much like Strike Force Five, the show was set to raise money for their staff members. However, the live show was canceled because Kimmel tested positive for COVID-19.

Rolling Stone published a report on October 7 that detailed the alleged toxic work environment on The Tonight Show caused by Fallon's "erratic behavior". Nina Metz of the Chicago Tribune commented on what it meant for the future of the podcast, saying, "These are public figures who have worked to cultivate reputations as decent human beings who are sincerely interested in the people who work for them. [...] How does continuing with Fallon – as if nothing is amiss – not tarnish that?" Linda Holmes on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast also expressed that it would be odd to not address the allegations even if they had prerecorded episodes. It was later revealed that at least two other episodes were recorded before the report, and the controversy remained unaddressed after the end of the podcast.

Several celebrities made guest appearances on the podcast, including Jon Stewart, David Letterman, and Ryan Reynolds. Conan O'Brien was set to be one of the guests, but the strike ended before he could be scheduled.

As the writers' strike ended on September 27, allowing the production of late-night talk shows to resume, the hosts announced that the podcast would end after an unspecified number of episodes. The podcast ended on October 10, 2023, after 12 episodes.

Format
The podcast was set to run for at least 12 episodes, with each episode lasting approximately 60 minutes. During each episode, the five hosts would discuss one or more subjects, such as fishing or interesting facts about their parents, on a Zoom call. The leading host, who is different for every episode, would usually decide on the subjects. Additionally, a thunder sound effect played every time the podcast title was mentioned. The podcast's improvised nature aimed to demonstrate the importance of their staff members, such as researchers and writers, to their respective shows.

Reception
Strike Force Five received positive to mixed reviews, with many critics praising the cause but also commenting on the uneven quality of the podcast. Alexi Duggins of The Guardian found the conversations interesting, with Sarah Larson of The New Yorker writing that it was refreshing to hear the hosts having friendly discussions while also supporting the strike. Many critics felt that the unscripted nature of the podcast sometimes lead to unfocused discussions,  with Sean Malin of Vulture noting that it depended on who was hosting the episodes. Brianna Wellen of Primetimer echoed the sentiment in her review of the first episode, adding that the podcast felt like "an unofficial battle between to be the top late night star" due to the hosts having to interrupt each other. During an episode of The Colin McEnroe Show podcast, critic Nicholas Quah expressed that the comedic potential of the show remained largely untapped. Fiona McCann of the Irish Times thought that the podcast was lackluster compared to the hosts' respective talk shows.

The podcast also saw responses from late-night staff members, subject-matter journalists, and other late-night hosts. Bill Carter, author of The Late Shift and The War for Late Night, praised the idea and said that the hosts "get along pretty well, which is kind of atypical for the history of late night." Sarah Kobos, photo research coordinator for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, expressed her gratitude for the podcast going towards helping fellow staff members. Greg Gutfeld, who hosts Gutfeld! on Fox News, called the podcast "pathetic" and additionally criticized the comedy styles of the hosts' shows. Gutfeld's show was unaffected by the writers' strike because it did not employ WGA writers.

Many critics consider the fifth episode, "Strike Force Wives!", where Fallon hosts a game show similar to The Newlywed Game, the best episode of the podcast. Host Seth Meyers commented that it was "the launch pad" for Strike Force Five, as the hosts discovered that audiences enjoyed a looser approach to the podcast.

Strike Force Five debuted at number one on the podcast and news podcast charts of both Apple and Spotify in the United States. The podcast was featured on Time list of the top 10 podcasts of 2023, with Eliana Dockterman commenting, "Celebrity podcasts can be self-aggrandizing and irksome, but this particular group charms with their willingness to humiliate themselves."