‘Late Show With Stephen Colbert’ Canceled Due to Reported ‘Financial Decision’

The struggles of late-night television as a whole continue to mount.

CBS announced today that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will come to an end after the next TV season, due to a “financial decision,” according to Variety.

Stephen Colbert took the reins of The Late Show after its previous host, David Letterman, retired in 2015. Colbert was previously known for hosting The Colbert Report, a Comedy Central series built around satirizing conservative talking heads like the ones on the Fox News channel.

The Late Show is an iconic name and the highest-rated late-night talk show, making its cancellation surprising.

“We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire ‘The Late Show’ franchise” in May of 2026,” CBS executives said in a statement. “We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television. This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night.  It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”

The Late Show began in 1993 when CBS managed to lure David Letterman away from his hosting job of Late Night with David Letterman over at NBC.

According to Variety, there is “growing speculation” that both Colbert and Jon Stewart are under scrutiny from executives at Skydance Media. Both Colbert and Stewart frequently satirize decisions made by Donald Trump’s administration, and Skydance CEO David Ellison is known for being a Trump supporter.