In an incredibly unexpected and counterintuitive recent move, CBS just canceled “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” This quirky, fast-paced late-night hit that has delighted audiences since launching in 1993. The decision has come as a surprise to the show’s fans and host alike. It arrives amid an ever-challenging economic landscape that the entire arts sector has been facing.
The amazing Stephen Colbert said he was so shocked at the cancellation it was “so surprising and so shocking.” He emphasized his long-standing positive relationship with CBS and reflected on the nature of television, saying, “Listen, every show’s got to end at some time.” The show is currently scheduled to end in May 2026.
In an interview on the cancellation, CBS chief George Cheeks cited economic factors. When taken in sum, he continued, the advertising marketplace overall is seeing a “massive secular decline.” It simply “really just wasn’t sustainable to be able to keep doing it,” he said on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” The cancellation has been met with various responses, including a professional celebration from a high-profile opponent.
The president of the United States took to social media to express his feelings about the cancellation, stating:
“I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. But I think we’re the first number one show to ever get cancelled.”
Just last week, Colbert lampooned CBS’s parent company, Paramount. He disliked their $16 million settlement with Donald Trump over a lawsuit he thought was meritless, possibly dooming the show’s existence. He remarked on this situation, stating, “I can understand why people would have that reaction because CBS or the parent corporation… decided to cut a check for $16m to the president of the United States over a lawsuit that their own lawyers, Paramount’s own lawyers, said is completely without merit.”
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert host’s predecessor David Letterman criticized the move, calling it “pure cowardice.” He even made a prediction that the people behind the cancellation would one day regret what they did.
“I think one day, if not today, the people at CBS who have manipulated and handled this are going to be embarrassed. This is gutless.”
As Colbert prepares for the show’s conclusion, he expressed a sense of relief about no longer needing to “put on the snorkel and get into the sewer every day.” He also had a good sense that show business is kind of a crap shoot. There are so many reasons shows end – some by design, others by decision, or those outside of the show’s control.
The most startling effect of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” being canceled is that it will be an end of late-night television as we know it. Future fans and critics will surely reckon with its legacy. The conversations about the meaning of this ruling and its place in the bigger picture of television programming are still continuing.