The biggest casualty in American late-night TV in 2025 was CBS’s Colbert, who found out in July that his show would be axed. Although the broadcaster said in a statement that the decision was purely financial, many have speculated that the political bent of Colbert’s comedy – which is vehemently anti-Trump – also played a part. The president was, of course, delighted, calling Colbert “a pathetic trainwreck, with no talent or anything else necessary for show business success”.
It’s a shocking defenestration. Colbert has long been a key figure in CBS’s line-up, beginning as a correspondent on The Daily Show, then creating The Colbert Report, and finally succeeding David Letterman as host of The Late Show in 2015.
Colbert has hosted countless celebrities (including, in a recent wince-inducing appearance, Prince Harry) and been a major Hollywood power player. So, what now – will he join the swelling ranks of podcasters? Or switch to acting? He recently made a guest appearance on crime drama Elsbeth, playing… a late-night host, who gets murdered. That might not suggest extraordinary range.
David Walliams
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