Stephen Colbert didn’t hold back, delivering a sharp retort to President Donald Trump after Trump celebrated the news of The Late Show’s cancellation by CBS in a Truth Social post.
Following the announcement that the show would be ending after a 33-year run for the Late Show franchise, Trump expressed his delight, writing, “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings.” He extended his criticism to other talk show hosts like Jimmy Kimmel and The Tonight Show’s Jimmy Fallon, while praising Greg Gutfeld’s program, stating, “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show.“
CBS announced last week that Colbert’s show would conclude, citing the reason as “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night TV,” and adding, “it was not anything to do with the show’s performance content, or other matters happening at Paramount.” This statement came after Colbert himself had openly criticized his own network, CBS, over their $16 million settlement with Trump regarding the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris before the 2024 election.
Responding to Trump’s post on The Late Show on Monday, Colbert quipped, “How dare you, sir. Would an untalented man be able to compose the following satirical witticism? Go f–k yourself!”
Colbert also dismissed Trump’s prediction about Jimmy Kimmel being next to go, stating, “Nope! No, no. Absolutely not, Kimmel. I am the martyr, okay? Okay? There’s only room for one on this cross and I gotta tell you, the view is fantastic from up here!“
He also subtly highlighted Trump’s past association with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, remarking, “The only other story out there is kind of a small one. The president was buddies with a pedophile.“
The context for this tension includes Paramount (CBS’s parent company) seeking to sell to Skydance, with the merger requiring Trump administration approval to proceed. Colbert had publicly blasted the lawsuit settlement on his program just days before the cancellation announcement, drawing attention to rumors that Skydance intended to silence him and his criticisms of Trump.
On his show on July 14, Colbert declared, “I believe this kind of complicated financial settlement with a sitting government official has a technical name in legal circles. It’s called a big fat bribe.” He added, “Because this all comes as Paramount’s owners are trying to get the Trump administration to approve the sale of our network to a new owner, Skydance.“
Colbert had also revealed the show’s cancellation during last Thursday’s broadcast, sharing, “Before we start the show, I want to let you know something I found out just last night. Next year will be our last season. The network will be ending ‘The Late Show’ in May.“
Numerous viewers have since speculated that the show’s cancellation could be directly linked to the network’s recent legal settlement with President Trump, given Stephen’s vocal criticism of the President.
One viewer remarked, “Just days after Paramount announces it has settled the lawsuit Trump brought against them, they announce they are cancelling Stephen Colbert.“
Another commented, “Can’t help but think the cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s show was part of the settlement that Paramount agreed to. It’s so obvious.“
