Stephen Colbert has fired back at President Donald Trump for gloating about the cancellation of his talk show.
Monday’s (June 21) edition of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert came after Trump posted on his Truth Social account: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings”.
Feigning outrage, the host said: “How dare you, sir? Would an untalented man be able to compose the following satirical witticism?”. He then turned to a camera marked “Eloquence Cam” and said in a New York accent: “Go fuck yourself” (the expletive was censored). The audience applauded and chanted his name.
Colbert announced that the show would be ending on Thursday’s (July 17) episode, preceded by an official statement from CBS that emphasised it was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night” and “not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount”.
Some, however, believe the decision was motivated by a $16million settlement made by parent company Paramount to Trump over the editing of a 2024 interview with Kamala Harris on 60 Minutes. Just days before the cancellation was announced, Colbert branded the move a “big fat bribe”.
The forthcoming merger between Paramount and Skydance, which needs to be ratified by the government to go ahead, was also mooted as a reason why Colbert, one of Trump’s sternest critics, would be taken off the air by the network.
On Monday’s show, Colbert responded to Trump’s post that “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next”, saying: “Nope, no, no. Absolutely not. Kimmel, I am the martyr. There’s only room for one on this cross. And the view is fantastic from up here. I can see your house!”
He then asserted that he would continue to be a critic of the President, saying: “Over the weekend, it sunk in that they’re killing off our show. But they made one mistake: They left me alive. And now, for the next 10 months, the gloves are off. I can finally speak unvarnished truth to power and say what I really think about Donald Trump, starting right now”. He then comically underplayed the criticism, saying: “I don’t care for him. Doesn’t have the skillset to be president. Not a good fit, that’s all”.
He would then question CBS’ statement. While he said they have “always been great partners”, he scrutinised their statement by asking: “how could it be purely be a financial decision if The Late Show is No. 1 in ratings?” He also mocked a leak saying the show was losing $40million a year by implying $16million might have been Paramount’s settlement with Trump.
Fellow late night TV hosts have shown their support for Colbert, with Jimmy Kimmel posting: “Love you Stephen. Fuck you and all your Sheldons CBS” (a reference to The Big Bang Theory franchise). Jimmy Fallon would address the decision on the Monday edition of his show, saying: “I don’t like what’s going on one bit. These are crazy times”.
