Colbert's Late Show Ending Amid Controversy: Summer Hiatus, Trump Feud, & Future Plans

Stephen Colbert BioSnap a weekly updated Biography. It has been a whirlwind few days in the world of Stephen Colbert—both onstage and beyond. According to Entertainment Weekly, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is currently airing only reruns as the show takes its traditional summer hiatus. The episodes airing now are a curated selection of high-profile interviews from earlier this year, including A-listers like George Clooney, Alan Ritchson, Bad Bunny, and even late-night colleague John Oliver. Brand new episodes will resume on Tuesday, September 2, after the break. But the biggest headline still looming is CBS's controversial announcement that it will end Colbert’s Late Show, and retire the entire franchise, after the May 2026 season. As first detailed by CBS and confirmed by multiple sources including Variety and Wikipedia, this decision is being framed by the network as a purely financial one, citing ongoing tough conditions in late night television. The network has emphasized it’s not a reflection on performance or Colbert’s content—a claim met with skepticism and outright suspicion in some quarters, considering the timing aligns closely with a major settlement between Paramount and former President Donald Trump over a disputed 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris. Stephen Colbert, never shy about political confrontation, responded on air with a fiery monologue before the summer hiatus, directly mocking Vice President JD Vance and referencing his own future career moves with lines like, Netflix call me, I'm available in June. Noted in Entertainment Weekly, he's keeping options open, even flirting with rivals like Amazon. For his August 7th episode, Colbert’s willingness to address divisive current events was front and center in a segment with Senator Alex Padilla, who discussed immigration policy and a recent brush with the now-vice president’s taunts. The speculation swirling around Colbert’s cancellation has reached late night circles, too. Jimmy Kimmel, as covered by Variety, dismissed recent reports that Colbert’s show was losing tens of millions annually, calling such claims nonsensical and blaming outsiders for not understanding how revenue works for these franchises. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has publicly taken credit—and then denied responsibility—for the show's cancellation, posting gleeful reactions on Truth Social, only to receive a signature rebuke from Colbert. The back-and-forth made headlines, and clips of Colbert’s comeback swiftly circulated on social media, with friends like Jon Stewart and Jimmy Fallon voicing support, as highlighted on AOL. On Instagram, Colbert has grabbed some attention with a lighthearted reel: he recently spent a day living like Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, a humorous nod to ultra-wealth living, with his adventure going moderately viral among fans and financial influencers. As for rumors about Colbert teaming with a Democratic politician for a new show, Daily Herald reports this is un This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.