Stephen Colbert’s time as host of The Late Show ends on Thursday. It marks the end of the late-night genre for CBS.
What We Know: Colbert’s final show as host of The Late Show is scheduled for Thursday night at 11:35pm ET. He has hosted the show since 2015. The end of the program is no surprise. He announced that the show would end last summer after being informed by the network that it would do away with the program entirely. Following his final program, Byron Allen’s Comics Unleashed will air in its place. Allen told USA TODAY recently that Colbert sent him a text congratulating him on taking over the time slot. As a sign of respect, both The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Live! will air reruns on Thursday evening. LateNighter.com reports that Colbert’s final program will run 17 minutes long.
What They Said: “You folks wouldn’t be in the theater if it weren’t for me, and Stephen wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for me, and we rebuilt this theater, and then Stephen came in and look at this, it’s like the Bellagio. As we all understand, you can take a man’s show, you can’t take a man’s voice.” -David Letterman
What Remains Unclear: Who will appear on the final episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert? The show’s final guest has remained a mystery. Some reports suggest Pope Leo XIV could be on the program. Colbert, an avowed Catholic, has not confirmed those reports, however. Where Colbert lands next is a story many in media will be following.
What It Means: It marks the end of an era for CBS. The Late Show has been a staple since Letterman’s introduction on the network 33 years ago. Following his retirement, Stephen Colbert stepped in and kept the show popular in the space. However, a reported severe decline in advertising revenue in the window led to losses that the company found insurmountable. Some reports have suggested the network was losing as much as $40 million per year on the show.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
The left wing are carrying on as if he died…HE GOT FIRED because his ratings were at the bottom (nobody tuned in)….he got almost 20 mil a year and his show lost an ADDITIONAL40MILLION.
CBS had every right and a duty to shareholders and the public to present something that people wanted to watch. The country is tired of replacing a time set aside for comedy to be turned into a political rant EVERY NIGHT……..