Carson Daly Returned to ‘TRL’ Times Square Studio For Reunion Special, But It Won’t Air on MTV

As it turns out, you can go home again.

via: EW

Let the countdown begin for every millennial’s dream: A long-awaited TRL reunion special featuring the grand return of Carson Daly.

Entertainment Weekly has exclusively learned that Daly returned to film a Total Request Live — often abbreviated to just TRL — reunion special last week in New York City, but it wasn’t for the show’s original network, MTV.

Daly, 53, returned Thursday to the show’s original Times Square studio in Manhattan, where he shot the reunion special for the Roku company.

The former TRL host, Last Call With Carson Daly star, and current Today show cohost will produce the special alongside the music countdown show’s original series creator, Tony DiSanto.

The special is expected to air at some point in 2027, though a specific release date wasn’t yet available at press time.

Stars of the era were seen near the studio last week, with cameras capturing JoJo, Mýa, Ashanti, JC Chasez, Nelly, and more near the building. EW was unable to verify if the stars attended the TRL taping.

Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for MTV, Roku, and Daly for comment.

First premiering in 1998, TRL became a millennial staple on MTV. In addition to musical performances, news recaps, and celebrity interviews, the live show centered on a fan-voted, top-10-style countdown of the most popular music videos of the day.

The show also hosted several headline-making moments, from Eminem’s full-episode takeover in 2000 to Britney Spears’ 2003 performance in Times Square as part of the show.

In 2001, one day before she was hospitalized for exhaustion, Mariah Carey made an impromptu visit to the program while pushing an ice cream cart, and proceeded to strip her shirt off to reveal other garments underneath.

Though the show was a pop culture powerhouse in the early aughts, it waned in popularity as MTV shifted its programming away from music in favor of reality projects. TRL first ended in 2008, though it was briefly revived from 2017-2019.

While pop acts and Hollywood performers regularly appeared on TRL throughout its run, the show also made stars out of its hosts — also known as VJs or “Video Jockeys” — including Daly, Dave Holmes, Hilarie Burton, Quddus, Damien Fahey, La La Anthony, Vanessa Lachey, Susie Castillo, Sway, and more.