NBCNBC sure likes Jimmy Fallon.
The Peacock network is planning to announce Jay Leno's retirement from The Tonight Show sometime in the next year, sources confirm to E! News.
The front-runner to replace him? Fallon, who has been successful at the 12:35 a.m. time slot with Late Night. Our sources add nothing is official yet and no official offer has been made to Fallon.
Leno is signed through 2014.
Of course, this isn't the first time Leno has retired and been replaced: Conan O'Brien famously replaced him in 2010 and we all know how that ended.
But the competition at the 11:35 p.m. slot is now stiffer than ever, with ABC moving Jimmy Kimmel to the coveted spot. While Leno still performs well for NBC, Kimmel has proved to be competitive in the ever-important 18-49 demo.
The Hollywood Reporter first reported news of Leno's exit from NBC.
(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)