Comedian Stephen Colbert will be out of a job next year after CBS announced that his show will be canceled in May when his contract is up.
This was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night,” CBS executives said. “It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
“Our admiration, affection and respect for the talents of Stephen Colbert and his incredible team made this agonizing decision even more difficult,” the statement added.
Paramount is in the midst of closing a multibillion-dollar merger with the movie studio Skydance, a deal that requires approval from the Trump administration. Paramount recently agreed to pay President Trump $16 million to settle a lawsuit over an interview on “60 Minutes,” a move Mr. Colbert criticized on his show as “a big fat bribe.” The merger still requires the approval of the Federal Communications Commission. [...]
The show’s abrupt cancellation is the latest in a series of profound changes to the world of late-night television. The genre has been struggling as the majority of the country migrates in droves to streaming entertainment and away from traditional broadcast and cable television. Last month, streaming overtook broadcast and cable as the leading distribution method for video entertainment for the first time.
In 2018, network late-night shows took in $439 million in ad revenue, according to Guideline, an advertising data firm. By last year, that figure had dropped to $220 million, a 50 percent drop in just seven years.
The cancellation of “The Late Show” raised immediate questions, though, about whether it was tied to the government’s review of Paramount’s merger with Skydance or the recent settlement with Mr. Trump. Mr. Colbert, who has hosted show for a decade, has been a passionate critic of Mr. Trump. (NYT)
NEW: 'The Late Show With Stephen Colbert' has been canceled, according to Deadline.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 17, 2025
The show will be ending in May of 2026 at the end of the broadcast season.
"I’m not being replaced, this is all just going away," Colbert said.
CBS says the move was "purely a financial… pic.twitter.com/DbWa69MKj9
Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff of California and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts both said the public deserves to know if the program is being canceled "for political reasons."
Just finished taping with Stephen Colbert who announced his show was cancelled.
— Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 17, 2025
If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better.
CBS canceled Colbert’s show just THREE DAYS after Colbert called out CBS parent company Paramount for its $16M settlement with Trump – a deal that looks like bribery.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) July 18, 2025
America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.
Watch and share his message. pic.twitter.com/Rz7HcWFLYM
Adam Schiff on Colbert: Whines about being attacked by Trump, then looks into camera:
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) July 18, 2025
“Donald, piss off!"
**Clapping seals erupt**
Gosh, it’s a total mystery why this late night train wreck got cancelled. pic.twitter.com/6ejG7bmdtI
CNN’s senior legal analyst Elie Honig argued Democrats are “wasting their time” if they press for answers on this.
“Two initial reactions to this. Number one, what on earth is Congress doing wasting their time on this? CBS is a private industry. If they want to give AOC the show, God bless them. If they want to go Fox News, God bless them. They‘re private. That‘s First Amendment, Congress, if Democrats, if Elizabeth Warren, they go down this road. What an utter waste.”