(Hint: The answer involves John Oliver.)
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: So lets talk about season 3.
What can viewers expect to see during the election year?
Credit: Eric Liebowitz/HBO
JOHN OLIVER:Our election coverage is more likely to be about the process than the people.
What kind of stories will that result in?
Do you have anything big like that planned for this season?
We do, weve got some long, germinating ideas.
So, we have a couple of ideas.
I like the idea that people will watch without knowing necessarily what were going to talk about.
And I guess Snowden was probably the apex of that.
And the interesting thing with that was we didnt tell HBO we were going.
I didnt tell them until we got back from Russia, and then said, Surprise!
And amazingly, they were fine with all of it.
So in terms of testing the boundaries, that really did seem to imply that there are not many.
It was an amazing thing for them to do.
Even with the studio audience.
What is that conversation like with HBO?
They dont say much.
In a very real sense, they have more important s to be worrying about than our show.
I think most of their primary concerns are dragon-based.
Are the dragons doing okay?
Whats going on with the dragons?
The dragons, theyre really important in that building.
I think we are like very small fish.
Is there a pressure to out-Snowden yourself this season?
I dont know if you’ve got the option to out-Snowden.
There are not many famous fugitives on earth!
[Laughs] But I think were trying to plan on some surprises.
The show is returning on Feb. 14, which obviously is Valentines Day.
What is your pitch to viewers to justify watching your show on Valentines Day?
Listen: Valentines Day, as I think we all know, is a nightmare.
It is a human emotional minefield.
And the safest way to deal with a minefield is not to engage with it at all.
Its already too late.
If youre still wondering what to do for Valentines Day, its already too late.
So go in the other direction and watch the least romantic television show currently available.
Last Week Tonight With John Oliverreturns to HBO this Sunday at 11 p.m. A version of this story originally appeared inEntertainment Weeklyissue #1403-1404, on newsstands or available digitallyhere.
