{"id":26250,"date":"2025-07-27T01:59:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-27T01:59:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/26250\/"},"modified":"2025-07-27T01:59:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-27T01:59:09","slug":"david-letterman-blasts-cbs-and-skydance-goons-after-cancellation-of-stephen-colberts-late-show-bottom-feeders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/26250\/","title":{"rendered":"David Letterman blasts CBS and Skydance ‘goons’ after cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s \u201cLate Show\u201d: ‘Bottom feeders’"},"content":{"rendered":"

David Letterman<\/a>, a former titan of late-night television, has come to the defense of his successor amid controversy surrounding the cancellation<\/a> of Stephen Colbert<\/a>‘s Late Show<\/a> at CBS<\/a>.<\/p>\n

During a recent appearance on his former Late Show producer’s YouTube series, The Barbara Gaines Show<\/a>, Letterman praised Colbert for taking the reins of the iconic franchise and having “pretty quickly established himself as a precise, crisp, witty political satirist” whose “target has been the current administration.”<\/p>\n

He then echoed growing speculation that the shocking cancellation of Colbert’s show stemmed from political reasons, in an effort to minimize complications with the Federal Communications Commission over CBS parent company Paramount’s impending merger with David Ellison’s Skydance media group.<\/p>\n

\"Scott<\/p>\n

Scott Kowalchyk\/CBS via Getty<\/p>\n

Stephen Colbert on ‘The Late Show’<\/p>\n

Letterman then referred to the “goons at CBS,” saying he suspected that they had internal discussions about “trouble from that guy,” meaning Colbert, and that the network might have agreed to axe the entire Late Show franchise to eliminate the possibility of his successor inheriting his political tone.<\/p>\n

“They did not do the correct thing,” the 78-year-old former host said. “They did not handle Stephen Colbert, the face of that network, in the way he deserves to have been handled. That’s what I think.”<\/p>\n

Letterman then raised a concern about a reason the network gave for the show’s cancellation \u2014 that it was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night,” despite CBS giving the show one more season to air.<\/p>\n

“That’s another huge chunk of money they’re going to lose, according to them,” Letterman said, casting doubt that a network would allow a show to run for another 10 months when it was allegedly a financial liability.<\/p>\n

“I don’t think it was money,” Letterman said, before elaborating on an interview-long bit in which he joked that Ellison is among a set of twins known as the “oracle boys.”<\/p>\n

“I think it’s sad,” he said. “But what this indicates also is the Ellison twins, the oracle boys, they don’t want any trouble along the lines of freedom of the press or free speech or freedom of expression. They don’t want to get their hands dirty. They don’t want the government going after them because that concept of freedom of the press and freedom of speech, that’s so old-fashioned.”<\/p>\n

\"John<\/p>\n

John Paul Filo\/CBS via Getty<\/p>\n

David Letterman on ‘The Late Show With David Letterman’ in 2015<\/p>\n

“There’s no fairness to these goons,” Letterman continued. “These guys are bottom feeders. That’s exactly what this is. Of course they know that broadcast television is withering. They just want to make sure that on top of buying something that doesn’t have the same value as it had 30 years ago, they don’t want to be hassled by the United States government. So they want CBS to take care of all of that mess.”<\/p>\n

He finished by making a few more jabs at Ellison’s media company, asking, “What the f— is Skydance? Is it a discount airline?” before landing one final blow, telling Gaines, “This is gutless.”<\/p>\n

Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for CBS, the FCC, and Skydance for comment.<\/p>\n

Letterman is among many notable figures<\/a> who’ve spoken out<\/a> against the cancellation of Colbert’s Late Show, with the current host also voicing criticism and bluntly telling President Donald Trump<\/a> \u2014 who publicly celebrated the cancellation<\/a> \u2014 “Go f— yourself” on a recent broadcast.<\/p>\n

Sign up for\u00a0Entertainment Weekly’s\u00a0free daily newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to get breaking news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.<\/p>\n

Colbert’s isn’t the only talk show that has come under fire from the political sphere. In an exclusive statement to EW following Joy Behar<\/a>‘s claim on The View<\/a> that Trump is jealous of Barack Obama’s physical appearance and marriage, a White House spokesperson warned that the show could be “next to be pulled off the air.”<\/a><\/p>\n

Watch Letterman discuss the Late Show’s cancellation above.<\/p>\n

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