Longtime Kiss manager Doc McGhee said the band’s farewell tour was definitely the end for Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley – leaving room for the possibility of future band activity.

Last year it was announced that Kiss would play the final date of their End of the Road tour on July 17, 2021, in New York City. However, the group is one of several that have performed farewell tours in the past only to change its mind and return to action.

Asked in an episode of Rock Talk With Mitch Lafon whether Kiss might tour beyond the announced date, McGhee said, “I doubt things will ever change, but shit happens all the time. But from what we believe, today, this is the end of the road. Certainly for Gene and Paul.”

However, he added, "Will there be things of Kiss – movies, Broadway shows, whatever? Everybody’s talking about ‘em. It’s not happened yet. As far as a touring base, as far as going out and doing shows, no. There’s not going to be any tours with Gene and Paul. In essence, that’s the end of the road for Gene and Paul for sure.”

Doc McGhee Addresses Kiss' Future

The band recently announced that it will release Kisstory, a "definitive" documentary about the band, this fall. A Kiss biopic is also scheduled for release in the summer of 2021.

Simmons and Stanley are the only remaining original members of the band, though guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer have both served longer than originals Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. In 2018, McGhee argued that Kiss could continue with no original members.

“Is there a next generation of Superman? No, there's just fucking Superman," he said. "There's been six of them, [but still] it’s Superman. As long as these kids walk out there and they have that makeup and they have that attitude and they have a great fucking visual show ... that's what Kiss is. Kiss is a way of life.”

The following year, Stanley, who’d voiced support for the idea on a number of occasions, said he wasn't "sure about the idea of Kiss coming to an end. We've built something that's so iconic, and I think it transcends any of the members, so I can certainly see me not being there. There was a time where people said it had to be the four of us, and those people are already 50 percent wrong.”

In a recent interview with Modern Drummer, Singer said he doesn't "know what the future is going to hold for me. So, I like to keep myself open-minded for the possibility that I might end up doing something completely out of left field."

Speaking to Tass (via Blabbermouth), Thayer -- who produced many of Kiss' long-form home-video and book projects before taking an onstage role with the group -- seemed open to having his role evolve in a new manner. "I am younger than the other guys," he said. "Maybe I will still be involved with Kiss in a different way."

Kiss are currently touring North America with Van Halen singer David Lee Roth opening. Last year, they announced that their final-ever concert will take place at an as-yet-unnamed venue in their hometown. Their 10th-annual Kiss Kruise will set sail Oct. 30 - Nov. 4. Former guitarist Bruce Kulick will once again be part of the festivities, alongside Fozzy, Ratt and Queensryche.

 

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