Katherine Newbury (Emma Thompson) has been a successful late night talk show host for decades, but complacency and falling ratings mean she may be about to lose her show. Can new diversity hire Molly (Mindy Kaling) generate the urgency needed to save the show?

I genuinely wanted to love Late Night. It features some outstanding talent and has a really prescient message for today’s times. But for me it failed in two huge areas. Firstly, for a film about a late night comedy talk show it barely raises a chuckle and secondly, as a drama it failed to make me truly care about any of its characters.

The talent involved include the hilarious Mindy Kaling as writer and star (The Office and The Mindy Project), Reid Scott (Veep) and Ike Barinholtz (Suicide Squad and The Mindy Project) as well as acting royalty in Emma Thompson. John Lithgow even has a small role as Newbury’s husband. Whilst the subjects tackled are all about meritocracy in the workplace such as sexism, racism and ageism, all things that we should be striving to address. Unfortunately though, the atmosphere feels sterile. Newbury is too closed off and mean to generate any feeling towards her. And aside from a small montage in the middle showing the efforts to turn the show around none of the humour hits home.

It’s heart is in the right place but it is staid, just like Newbury’s show when the film begins.