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Quickly-to-be former late-night host Stephen Colbert is about to present his closing curtain name in simply over 4 months — and he’s “not thrilled about it.”
Colbert, 61, revealed Wednesday that the final episode of “The Late Present with Stephen Colbert” will air on Could 21, ending an 11-year run on CBS.
“It feels actual,” he mentioned throughout an look on “Late Night time with Seth Meyers. “Now there’s 4 months left and I, you already know, the exhibits are enjoyable to do, however what I actually love is the folks I do it with.”
“It feels actual now. I’m not thrilled with it,” he mentioned, teasing that he plans on doing “one thing else collectively” along with his group after the present’s cancellation.
In July, CBS had introduced that the “Late Present,” which first aired with David Letterman in 1993, could be shut down after the 2025-2026 broadcast schedule.
Colbert, who changed Letterman in 2015, has not taken kindly to his extremely publicized departure.
“You are able to do comedy in plenty of completely different locations. There’s no place just like the Ed Sullivan Theater, but it surely’s actually the folks. Thats what I care about, that’s actually what I’m going to overlook greater than something.”
CBS mentioned it was a “monetary resolution” to cancel the long-running present, as below Colbert, “The Late Present” misplaced.
“Colbert loses $40 million to $50 million a yr, so (co-CEO) George Cheeks simply determined to tug the plug,” a supply instructed The Put up’s Charles Gasparino.
In Quarter 4 TV scores, “The Late Present” led all late-night speak exhibits with 2.69 million whole viewers over 37 exhibits, The Late Nighter reported.
Regardless of a 5 % drop in viewership over the third quarter when Colbert noticed a week-long spike after the announcement, “The Late Present” remained on the high in viewership in all late-night present broadcasts, forward of “Jimmy Kimmel Reside!”
After his cancellation was introduced, “The Late Present” was nominated and received the Primetime Emmy Award for Excellent Speak Collection, Colbert’s first whereas main the present.
Nevertheless, Colbert’s present was projected to hit file lows for January viewership in the important thing 25- to 54-year-old demographic, with a median of solely 285,000 viewers per present, The Put up reported.
Colbert and different liberal comedians have been fast to level blame at President Trump and FCC Chair Brendan Carr after CBS settled a lawsuit with the president for $16 million over a deceptively edited “60 Minutes” interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
Colbert referred to as himself a martyr of free speech and vowed to ramp up criticism of Trump in his final episodes.
“They made one mistake, they left me alive. For the following 10 months, the gloves are off,” he instructed his viewers in July.
On January 22, Colbert mentioned the FCC — led by Carr — was attempting to silence him, Meyers and Jimmy Kimmel after the company carried out a brand new steering for political visitor appearances.
The FCC is asserting plans to implement long-dormant guidelines on appearances by political candidates on community speak exhibits. Oh, no. They’ve woke up the long-dormant guidelines, not seen for the reason that mind-bending horrors of the pre-Euclidean selection present Cthulhu Tonight.”
Colbert claimed that the FCC’s new steering is “clearly an try to silence me, Jimmy and Seth,” earlier than wanting into the digital camera and immediately addressing the company.
“Hey, I’m flattered you assume that showing on my present has the ability to have an effect on politics in any manner, OK? I’ve been doing this job for 21 years, and let me inform you one thing, buddy. If our authorities had turned out the best way I had chosen, you wouldn’t have the ability to make this announcement,” he railed.
Between 2022 and 2025, “The Late Present” had booked over 176 left-leaning friends and just one Republican, in keeping with a research by media watchdog NewsBusters.
“Colbert’s present has been late-night group remedy for liberals,” NewsBusters managing editor Curtis Houck instructed The Put up. “People have frequently proven they now not have the time or endurance for such partisan sneering masquerading as comedy.”
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