[12] Filming commenced on November 4, 2015 at Studio 8H, where Saturday Night Live originates, as confirmed from photos shared by Fallon on his Instagram account.

[20] On April 6, 2017, opening day, Jimmy Fallon was paraded to the entrance of the attraction on a New York-themed float joined by Steve Higgins, The Roots, Sara's stepdad, Gary, and Hashtag the Panda, from the backlot.

[21] Following a series of disagreements between the parties about the cause of delays, Universal made the decision to hire Peterson Inc., a Utah-based steel fabrication company, to build the mechanical parts of the ride system.

The conflict led to a lawsuit filed in 2021 by DyMoRides over $5 million in unpaid bills and damages sought for Universal operating its intellectual property without a license.

[22] The attraction is housed inside a replica of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon is taped, with the corridors of NBC Studios replicated in the queue.

This level features displays of the history of The Tonight Show dedicated to each of its past hosts, Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, and Conan O'Brien.

In the upper level of the queue, guests are entertained with live seasonal performances from The Ragtime Gals barbershop quartet onstage a replica of the Tonight Show stage.

When they're not performing, screens in the stage area play Jimmy's monologues, popular interviews and sketches, such as "History of Rap" and "Lip Sync Battle".

The upper level also has interactive desks throughout the waiting area where guests can send personalized Tonight Show Thank You Notes, play retro-style Fallon video games and have a meet-and-greet with Hashtag the Panda.

[18][a] Guests are called in to enter Studio 6B once the lighting in the upper level waiting area changes to the color of the NBC ticket they were given at the receptionist desk.

After the intro ends, Fallon begins the show with a quick monologue about the sights the audience will get to see in the race through New York City and requests the help of Roots rapper and lead vocalist Tariq Trotter to rap the safety precautions of the ride, instead of reciting them because "that's boring".

Steve Higgins once again introduces Jimmy Fallon, who re-emerges from backstage through the stage curtains, this time driving "The Tonight Rider", challenging the audience to the race through New York.

After almost crashing with an oncoming train (operated by Fallon), the audience is able to escape by reversing and turning into a tunnel under construction, exiting to the street at the first checkpoint.

As fireworks explode around Lady Liberty, the race heads towards the Empire State Building where a giant Hashtag the Panda, who is trying to swat away airplanes (a reference to King Kong), grabs the audience and launches them straight to the Moon.

The race reaches the Space Train, a roller coaster launcher on the moon, which is under construction, that launches Jimmy and then the audience back to Earth.