Stephen Colbert claims it’s “reasonable” to suggest ‘The Late Show’ cancellation was politically motivated
Stephen Colbert has claimed it is “reasonable” to suggest there was political motivation behind the cancellation of The Late Show, but insists he wants to maintain a good relationship with CBS.
The talk show host was speaking to GQ in a new interview, in which he discussed the axing of his long-running television slot, which was announced back in July and is scheduled to finish airing in May next year.
While Colbert said the speculation that the show is being cancelled due to CBS’ legal settlement with Donald Trump and its upcoming merger with the networks Paramount Global and Skydance was “a reasonable thing to think”, he stopped short of explicitly making the claim himself.
Although he made a jibe that the settlement has a “technical name in legal circles. It’s: big fat bribe,” Colbert maintained that his “side of the street is clean” and wanted to see out the end of his tenure on a positive note.
He said: “My reaction as a professional in show business is to go: that is the network’s decision. I can understand why people would have that reaction,” before adding, “I have had a great relationship with CBS. It’s one of the reasons why this was so surprising and so shocking that there was no preamble to this.”
Despite not being able to anticipate the cancellation and thus potentially souring the taste of his success, Colbert said it would not be “fruitful” for him to engage in the speculation as to why The Late Show is being shut down, even though it is clear he has his own thoughts on the matter.
Following the news of the cancellation, the talk show and entertainment world rallied around Colbert, most notably when he and his team won the award for ‘Talk Series’ at the 2025 Primetime Emmys.
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