Stephen Colbert took his seat behind the “The Late Show” desk for an emotional final broadcast Thursday evening that was largely void of references to CBS’ controversial cancellation of the famed franchise and President Donald Trump’s skewering of Colbert’s nightly jabs at him.
The cancellation drew harsh backlash and accusations that Paramount was ending the show to appease Trump. It came 10 months after Paramount-owned CBS announced it was pulling the show, citing financial reasons. Paramount at the time was seeking the Trump administration’s approval for its $8 billion merger with Skydance, which cleared in July and cemented Trump-aligned David Ellison as chairman and CEO of the powerful media company.
Colbert made it clear he had come to terms with his parent network’s decision Thursday as he invited an array of celebrities, including other late night show hosts and musical guests to offer words of wisdom. The 80-minute broadcast at the Ed Sullivan Theater made few mentions of the president and focused instead on Colbert’s signature themes of irony and optimism.
The show team refers to the production as “the joy machine,” Colbert said at the top of the show, noting that the show must run like a machine, but “if you choose to do it with joy, it doesn’t hurt as much when your fingers get caught in the gears.”
Trump cheered the show’s demise with a derogatory post on his social media platform Friday. “Colbert is finally finished at CBS. Amazing that he lasted so long! No talent, no ratings, no life,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after Colbert’s last broadcast wrapped. “He was like a dead person. You could take any person off of the street and they would be better than this total jerk. Thank goodness he’s finally gone!”
Trump, who is notoriously sensitive to late night criticism, has repeatedly attacked Colbert over his cutting sarcasm on the administration’s policies. Colbert has mocked Trump’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, his justification for the Iran war and the Department of Justice’s $1.8 billion “slush fund,” to name a few.
But Colbert himself did not opine about the end of the 33-year show.
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“I am waiting for angry Stephen to come out. I want to see you go nuts,” ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, whom Trump has repeatedly attacked, said during an interview with Colbert on one of his final shows.
Appearing on the show Wednesday night, Bruce Springsteen took aim at Trump and the Ellisons, saying Colbert is “the first guy in America who’s lost his show because we got a president who can’t take a joke. Larry and David Ellison … are small-minded people who got no idea what the freedoms of this beautiful country are supposed to be about.”
Colbert cracked jokes with Bryan Cranston, Paul Rudd, Tig Notaro, Ryan Reynolds, Jon Stewart, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, John Oliver and Neil deGrasse Tyson on Thursday night.
“Paramount strongly believes in covering both sides of any black hole that is swallowing everything we know and love, and coverage must also include the positive aspects of the insatiable emptiness,” Stewart told Colbert.
The broadcast ended with Paul McCartney performing the Beatles’ “Hello, Goodbye” as Colbert joined in.
Sydney Carruth is a breaking news reporter covering national politics and policy for MS NOW. You can send her tips from a non-work device on Signal at SydneyCarruth.46 or follow her work on X and Bluesky.