TV’s ongoing problems with late night have come for Stephen Colbert, with CBS announcing Thursday that it plans to end his “Late Show” after the next TV season, citing a “financial decision.”
The decision — which ends years of original late-night programming at CBS that started when the network lured David Letterman from NBC in 1993 — comes as the economics of wee-hours TV have begun to accelerate, with media companies growing wary of the high price tags involved in producing the shows while the young viewers they try to attract watch more of them via digital video.
“We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire ‘The Late Show’ franchise” in May of 2026,” CBS executives said in a statement. “We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television. This is 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, who was informed of the network’s decision Wednesday evening, according to a person familiar with the matter, told the audience at the taping for Thursday’s broadcast about the matter.
There has been growing speculation that both Colbert and Jon Stewart, who hosts one broadcast of Comedy Central’s “Daily Show” broadcasts each week, could be under growing scrutiny from executives at Skydance Media, which is slated to acquire Paramount Global, the parent of both CBS and Comedy Central. David Ellison, who leads Skydance, has projected an image of being intrigued by the politics espoused by President Donald Trump, who Colbert and Stewart routinely skewer in monologues and commentary.
Indeed, Senator Adam Schiff, the California Democrat, took to social media Thursday after taping a “Late Show” broadcast and said: “If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better.”
CBS has already been winding down its activity around midnight. The network recently cancelled “After Midnight,” a companion program that aired after “Late Show” and featured comedian Taylor Tomlinson. She decided to leave to focus on her own stand-up shows, even though CBS had sought a third season of the show.
Still, CBS’ decision has puzzled others in the industry. The exit of a popular late-night host is the kind of thing that might be announced during “upfront” meetings with advertisers in May, so as to boost interest in the program for its last year on air. Indeed, Johnny Carson unveiled his decision to leave NBC’s “Tonight Show” at a presentation to advertisers in 1991. David Letterman was celebrated at one of CBS’ regular upfront spectacles at Carnegie Hall, a decision that helped whet appetites for his last few months on “Late Show.”
More to come….