CBS Canceling ‘Late Show With Stephen Colbert' After Next Season
The show will end in May, the network said, calling it 'a purely financial decision.'
www.nytimes.comShort answer: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is being concluded by CBS, with final episodes airing in May 2026, as a financial decision by the network.[3][4]
Context and what this means
- What happened: CBS announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will end after the 2025–2026 season, making May 2026 the end date for the show and the franchise.[4][3]
- Why CBS cites: CBS described the decision as purely financial, amid broader late-night market pressures and related franchise adjustments.[3][4]
- Colbert’s response: He publicly addressed the cancellation on-air, noting he learned of the decision shortly before the announcement and reflecting on the situation with his typical humor and candor.[8][4]
- Broader context: The cancellation comes in the wake of industry-wide changes in late-night television, and it aligns with CBS’s consolidation and cost-cutting measures during the merger period and post-merger restructuring.[4][3]
What to expect next
- Final episodes: The show will produce and air through the end of the 2025–2026 season, with May 2026 cited as the concluding month for The Late Show franchise.[3][4]
- Potential successors or reorganization: CBS indicated the broader Late Show franchise would be sunset, suggesting a shift in how CBS approaches late-night programming in the future, though specific plans haven’t been detailed publicly.[3]
- Colbert’s post-Late Show plans: Public commentary to date includes discussion of what his next act might be; no official confirmation of his next project has been publicly disclosed as of the latest reports.[5]
Illustration: timeline snapshot
- 2015: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert premieres.
- 2025–2026 season: Final season planned.
- May 2026: The Late Show franchise ends; Colbert’s tenure on the program concludes.
If you’d like, I can pull a brief summary of the latest on-air remarks Colbert made about the cancellation or map out a potential post-Late Show career trajectory based on past moves by late-night hosts. I can also provide direct quotes from the key articles and their publication dates. Please tell me which you’d prefer.