The final episode of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' airs on Thursday, and there are speculations about the finale and political pressure on the show.
This image released by CBS shows host Stephen Colbert on the set of" The Late Show with Stephen Colbert " in New York on May 18, 2026.
Stephen Colbert attends The Hollywood Reporter's The Most Powerful People in New York Media issue celebration at Daniel on Thursday, May 7, 2026, in New York. ends Thursday night when the host of “The Late Show” appears behind his CBS desk for the final time.
What is planned for the finale has not been revealed but the folks at “The Late Show” have had months to prepare for the end of the network’s 33-year franchise. Guests in the final week have included Michael Keaton, Jon Stewart, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Steven Spielberg, David Byrne and Bruce Springsteen, while there's been a wacky version of “It’s Raining Men” remade into “It’s Raining Fish. ”economic reasons after 11 seasons. But Colbert is the ratings leader in late-night TV.
Many — including Colbert — have expressed skepticism that President Donald Trump’s repeated criticism of the show wasn't a factor.of Trump’s lawsuit over a “60 Minutes” interview as Paramount awaited his administration's approval of a pending sale to Skydance Media. Colbert had called it a “big fat bribe. ” Dustin Kidd, a professor of sociology at Temple University, notes that Colbert leaves at the top of his game and as the ratings leader on late night.
Canceling him can’t be explained strictly through economics, he said.
“I would argue that it’s answerable, frankly, through politics,” Kidd said. “There’s been a lot of political pressure levied against this show and a lot of political pressure at work within CBS more generally. And I think that has a lot more to offer in terms of explaining why this show, at this time. ” Colbert’s chief rivals, ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!
” and NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” will both run reruns on Thursday night at the same time as Colbert's goodbye. CBS will fill “The Late Show” slot with “Comics Unleashed,” in which comedians share stories. Host Byron Allen has vowed to avoid politics. Copyright 2026 The Associated Press.
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