David Letterman is finally weighing in on CBS’s decision to cancel the franchise he created 30-plus years ago.
In a newly released video for his YouTube channel, the legendary late-night host condemned his former network bosses, calling them “gutless” and “cowards” for how they’ve handled Stephen Colbert’s ousting.
“They did not do the correct thing. They did not handle Stephen Colbert, the face of that network, in the way he deserves to have been handled,” Letterman said, adding: “I think one day the people at CBS who have manipulated and handled this are going to be embarrassed.”
Letterman speculated that CBS’s move was less about money—as the network has claimed—and more about politics and corporate appeasement. Referencing the $16 million settlement Paramount paid Donald Trump to end a lawsuit involving 60 Minutes, Letterman suggested Colbert’s cancellation is an effort to avoid ruffling feathers ahead of the pending sale of CBS and Paramount to Skydance Media, whose ownership has close ties to Trump.
“They don’t want any trouble from that guy,” Letterman said, referring to Colbert’s pointed political satire. “So CBS said, ‘Not only are we going to get rid of that guy—we’re going to get rid of the entire franchise.’”
Calling Colbert “precise, crisp, witty” and “the face of the network” over the past decade, Letterman praised his successor and noted that his show had been nominated for an Emmy just before when the axe fell. “He’s a martyr,” Letterman added.
CBS maintains that Colbert’s cancellation was strictly a financial decision, citing declining ad revenues across the late-night landscape.
David Letterman launched Late Show on CBS in 1993, bringing his signature brand of offbeat humor to the 11:35 p.m. time slot for more than two decades. Colbert took over the show in 2015 after Letterman’s retirement, continuing to host the show from the Ed Sullivan Theater, which had been retrofitted for Letter two decades earlier.
Watch Letterman’s full remarks at the top of this post.