The Late Show with Stephen Colbert aired its last episode on Thursday (May 21), closing an almost-11-year run at the Ed Sullivan Theater. Colbert told his audience earlier in the week that the show had done almost 1,800 episodes.
CBS announced the cancellation in July 2025, calling it “purely a financial decision.” Critics have argued otherwise: Senator Elizabeth Warren called it political censorship, Billboard reported, after Colbert criticized Paramount’s $16 million legal settlement with President Trump. The show’s farewell week, though, was mostly a party.
Monday: the worst of The Late Show
On Monday (May 18), Colbert skipped the monologue and aired “The Worst of The Late Show,” a collection of bits that never made it to television, Rolling Stone reported. It opened with Michael Keaton outside Colbert’s window dressed as a pigeon in a dream. “We thought it would be more fun to show you stuff we’ve made and never aired,” Colbert told the audience. “Although technically what you’re about to see is the best worst stuff we ever made. Still, not great.”
Tuesday: David Byrne burns down the house
On Tuesday (May 19), David Byrne performed “Burning Down the House” on a stage that began with him on acoustic guitar and grew into a full-band show, with Colbert joining in to sing and dance, Pitchfork reported. Byrne has been a regular guest through the show’s run, from a 2018 American Utopia performance to a 2023 interview that reunited all four members of Talking Heads on Colbert’s couch.
Wednesday: a speech and a song
Springsteen came on Wednesday (May 20) for Colbert’s second-to-last show, delivering a speech and performing “Streets of Minneapolis,” which he wrote after the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in January. “I am here tonight to support Stephen, because you’re the first guy in America who lost his show because we’ve got a president who can’t take a joke,” he said. He also took aim at Larry and David Ellison, whose Skydance Media merger gave them control of Paramount, CBS’s parent company.
Thursday: the finale
The finale was calmer. According to Complex, citing the Daily Beast, Colbert avoided naming Trump and slipped in one understated joke during a conversation with Paul McCartney, who recalled the Beatles’ 1964 appearance at the same theater: “We’d gotten used to a little bit of makeup in England. But we went down there, and the girls put makeup on us, and it was like bright orange.” “That’s very popular in certain circles these days,” Colbert replied, drawing McCartney’s “We set a trend.”
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Outside, fans chalked a message of thanks to Colbert on the street before the show, Complex reported, and it’s unknown who wrote it. Trump celebrated on Truth Social early Friday, writing, “Colbert is finally finished at CBS.” Forbes, per Complex, has ranked Colbert No. 1 among total viewers for years, and the finale boosted ratings further. Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel aired reruns on Thursday, ceding the night to him.
What remains is the archive. The show posted the full “Worst of The Late Show” episode and the week’s music performances, including Springsteen’s, on its YouTube channel.
- Final episode
- Thursday, May 21, 2026
- Run
- Almost 11 years, almost 1,800 episodes
- Farewell week music
- David Byrne (May 19), Bruce Springsteen (May 20)
Added to the High Grailed archive on October 12, 2026.
