CBS has canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” with the final show scheduled for May 2026.
Host Stephen Colbert announced the shocking news to his studio audience on Thursday, July 17, at New York City’s Ed Sullivan Theater. “I want to let you know something I found out just last night,” Colbert told the audience. “Next year will be our last season. The network will be ending ‘The Late Show’ in May.”
As the audience expressed their dismay with loud moans, Colbert said, “Yeah, I share your feelings.”
The 61-year-old host and comedian continued, “It’s not just the end of our show, it’s the end of the ‘Late Show’ on CBS,” adding that, “I’m not being replaced. This is all just going away.”
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The announcement comes two days after “The Late Show” received an Emmy nomination for best talk series, along with “The Daily Show” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
Will Stephen Colbert be replaced as ‘The Late Show’ host?
A statement from Paramount Global executives, including co-CEO George Cheeks, stated that Colbert will not be replaced as host − the show will merely be ending.
“We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire ‘The Late Show’ franchise at that time,” the statement said. “We are proud that Stephen called CBS home.”
The Paramount statement called the move “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content, or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Colbert called Paramount’s $16 million settlement ‘big, fat bribe’
Paramount Global, CBS’s parent company, agreed on July 1 to a controversial $16 million settlement with Donald Trump over a defamation lawsuit tied to a “60 Minutes” interview with Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
The settlement was widely criticized as a financial concession to facilitate the studio’s pending sale to Skydance Media, which requires regulatory approval from the Trump administration.
In response, Colbert slammed the deal on-air on July 14, following a summer vacation. Colbert, still sporting an unfortunate summer vacation mustache, called the infamous $16 million payment a “big fat bribe” in his scathing opening monologue.
Colbert also mocked reports saying the new Paramount owners would try to “please Trump” by putting “pressure on Stephen Colbert.”
Sen. Adam Schiff, a frequent Trump critic who had just appeared on “The Late Show,” immediately suggested “political reasons” were at play.
“If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better,” Schiff wrote on X.
Just finished taping with Stephen Colbert who announced his show was cancelled.
If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better.
— Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 17, 2025
How long has Stephen Colbert hosted ‘The Late Show’?
The former “The Daily Show” correspondent and host of “The Colbert Report,” Colbert has hosted “The Late Show” for nearly 10 years, taking over on Sept. 8, 2015.
Colbert succeeded David Letterman, who sat in the host’s chair for nearly 22 years, from August 1993 until May 20, 2015.
Colbert gave praise to “great partners” CBS, the nightly audience, the house band and the 200 people who work on the show.
“It is a fantastic job, I wish someone else was getting it,” said Colbert. “And it’s a job I’m looking forward to doing with this usual gang of idiots for the another 10 months. It’s going to be fun.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Stephen Colbert’s late-night talk show on CBS to end in May 2026
