Stephen Colbert confirms May 21 as final episode of The Late Show'

"Stephen Colberts final hurrah on CBS has been set in motion. The late night kingpin reportedly broke the news during Monday's taping of Late Night With Seth Meyers that the long-running Late Show with Stephen Colbert will air its series finale on May 21. The official word comes six months after Colbert revealed that CBS' parent company Paramount Global decided to pull the plug on the late-night TV staple after more than three decades at New York City's Ed Sullivan Theater."

"The announcement came days after the 10-time Emmy winner criticized a $16 million settlement between President Trump and Paramount Global over the editing of a 60 Minutes news piece. He referred to the payment as a big fat bribe in his opening monologue. Next year will be our last season, he said when sharing the news of the show's shuttering. It's the end of The Late Show' on CBS. I'm not being replaced. This is all just going away."

"We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire The Late Show' franchise in May of 2026, the company said in a statement. We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television. This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show's performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount."

Stephen Colbert announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will air its series finale on May 21. Paramount Global decided to end The Late Show after more than three decades at New York City's Ed Sullivan Theater and will retire the franchise in May 2026. Colbert criticized a $16 million settlement between President Trump and Paramount Global, calling the payment a "big fat bribe" in his opening monologue. CBS described the cancellation as a purely financial decision unrelated to performance or content. Days later, the FCC approved Paramount's $8.4 billion sale to Skydance Media.

Read at www.mercurynews.com