CBS has announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will end in May 2026, retiring the 33-year-old talk show. Stephen Colbert, host since 2015, shared the news during Thursday’s taping, revealing he was informed of the decision the previous night.
“It’s not just the end of my show—it’s the end of The Late Show on CBS,” Colbert told the audience, clarifying, “I’m not being replaced; it’s all going away.”
🔥😂 THE REIGN OF THE THEATER KIDS IS COMING TO AN END.
— Johnny St.Pete (@JohnMcCloy) July 18, 2025
Cant make up a more ideal Bookend. It’s Only fitting that Stephen Colbert ANNOUNCES HIS CANCELLATION on the night ADAM SCHIFF is his guest.
Remember when he cried that night after the election after Trump contesting a… pic.twitter.com/L0ZPvonNSX
The crowd booed, to which he replied, “I share your feelings.”CBS executives attributed the cancellation to financial pressures in the late-night landscape, emphasizing it was unrelated to the show’s performance or content.
The decision comes amid scrutiny of Paramount Global, CBS’s parent company, which is navigating a proposed merger with Skydance Media.
Colbert, a vocal critic of Donald Trump, recently criticized Paramount’s $16 million settlement with Trump over a 60 Minutes interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, which Trump called biased. The timing has sparked speculation about political motivations.
The Late Show debuted in 1993 with David Letterman, who started it after losing The Tonight Show gig at NBC. Colbert, formerly of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, took over in 2015.
“It’s a fantastic job,” he said Thursday. “I wish someone else was getting it, and I’ll keep doing it with this gang of idiots for the next 10 months.”