"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" to end in May 2026

CBS will end "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and retire "The Late Show" franchise in May 2026, the company announced Thursday, calling it "purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night."

CBS called Colbert irreplaceable and said the show's ending was "not related in any way to the show's performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount," CBS' parent company.

"We are proud that Stephen called CBS home," the network said in a statement. "He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television."

Colbert broke the news to the audience during Thursday's taping, saying he found out last night that next year will be the show's final season.

The audience responded with an outcry of "No!" and boos, and Colbert said, "Yeah, I share your feelings."

"It's not just the end of our show, but it's the end of 'The Late Show' on CBS," he said. "I'm not being replaced. This is all just going away. And I do want to say ... that the folks at CBS have been great partners. I'm so grateful to the Tiffany Network for giving me this chair and this beautiful theater to call home. And of course I'm grateful to you, the audience, who have joined us every night."

He thanked the show's band and said he's "extraordinarily, deeply grateful to the 200 people who work here."

"I've had the pleasure and the responsibility of sharing what we do every day with you in front of this camera for the last 10 years," he said, adding, "It is a fantastic job. I wish somebody else was getting it. It's a job that I'm looking forward to doing with this usual gang of idiots for another 10 months."

Colbert took over "The Late Show" from David Letterman in 2015. Before that, he hosted "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central.

"Our admiration, affection, and respect for the talents of Stephen Colbert and his incredible team made this agonizing decision even more difficult," CBS' statement read, noting that the show has been No. 1 in late night for nine straight seasons. "With much gratitude, we look forward to honoring Stephen and celebrating the show over the next 10 months alongside its millions of fans and viewers," the network said.

Thursday's show features an interview with Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California. Schiff posted about the show's cancellation on social media, writing, "If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better."

Colbert has been an outspoken critic of President Trump and recently criticized Paramount's decision to settle a lawsuit with Mr. Trump for $16 million over the editing of a "60 Minutes" interview — a lawsuit Paramount has maintained was completely without merit.

Paramount is aiming to finalize an $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, which requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission.