On the Monday episode of his twice-weekly podcast WTF, host Marc Maron announced that the show will come to an end later this year.
Maron was one of the earliest podcasters to break out in the public consciousness, helping podcasts go mainstream. His podcast set a template for many of the long-form, confessional interview podcasts that have emerged from the medium.
He told listeners to his podcast that the reason he is planning to end the show was simply that he was burnt out. The WTF podcast has reliably been published every Monday and Thursday for 16 years straight without taking a break. For the entire run of the show, it was produced by Brendan McDonald.
Maron has not ruled out starting another interview show or podcast at a later stage. At a time where podcasts are making a pivot towards video, Maron has kept WTF as an audio-only show.
Almost every notable name in Hollywood have at one stage appeared as guests on the podcast, which will near 2000 episodes by the time it ends. He famously interviewed the then-US President Barack Obama from the garage in Maron’s home where he usually records the show.
After making his announcement in the most recent episode, Maron went on to interview comedian John Mulaney – one of the very few guests to have made multiple appearances on the show. They joked about the difficulties of Maron continuing to be interested in talking to actors about their craft.
Maron, a stand-up comedian, has become a prolific actor in recent years with roles in films like Joker and The Order, along with leading roles on TV series including Netflix’s comedy GLOW and the upcoming Apple TV+ Owen Wilson golf comedy Stick.