TV host Stephen Colbert blasts Trump following The Late Show cancellation and CBS payoff

Late-night television took a sharp political turn this week as comedian and host Stephen Colbert returned to screens with a blistering monologue directed at POTUS Donald Trump.

The remarks came after CBS cancelled Colbert’s long-running late-night show and finalised a multi-million dollar settlement with Trump. It has reignited debate over political pressure, free speech, and the role of corporate media in the aftermath of the 2024 election.

The timing of both the show’s abrupt end and the network’s legal payout has raised eyebrows. This becomes extremely vital as CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, is amid an $8 billion merger with Skydance Media, a production firm previously linked to Trump through entertainment dealings.

Stephen Colbert insults Trump on TV

Stephen Colbert, known for his satirical and outspoken political commentary, took direct aim at Trump, who was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize award, during a recent monologue. He warned Trump that the ‘gloves are off’ in his first broadcast since his show was cancelled. He also denounced Paramount for ‘censoring and controlling’ their hosts.

The remarks came just days after Paramount Global agreed to pay Trump $16 million to settle a long-running lawsuit related to a reality TV programme Trump had been developing with the network before his presidency. On-air, Colbert called the payout a ‘big fat bribe,’ suggesting the settlement was aimed at smoothing the path for Paramount’s proposed $8 billion merger with Skydance Media.

Trump—who plans to be POTUS for life—revelled in Colbert’s firing and took to his Truth Social platform to say:

I absolutely love that Colbert was fired.

Colbert came swinging at Trump and told him to ‘go f**k yourself.’

While Colbert was drawing a connection between the network’s settlement and the cancellation of his programme, no direct evidence has been presented to confirm this. He joked that it was always his dream to have a sitting President celebrate the end of his career.

Why was Colbert’s show cancelled?

CBS has maintained that the decision to cancel The Late Show was financially driven. According to Fox News, the show was losing a significant amount of money. The network cited declining ad revenue and high production costs as primary reasons for ending the programme, which had run under Colbert’s leadership since 2015.

An anonymous leak suggested that it lost $40 million to $50 million last year. Colbert, however, hinted that financials alone didn’t add up. During the same monologue, he claimed he could account for $24 million and said:

Where would Paramount have possibly spent the other $16m?

Adding:

Oh yeah!

He did not explicitly accuse CBS of wrongdoing but appeared to suggest the numbers were suspiciously aligned.

Additionally, there have been reports that Colbert’s manager had known of the show’s cancellation weeks before he was officially informed. He reportedly received a call from CBS executives informing him that they are thinking of walking away from Colbert and The Late Show.

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Sources used:

The Guardian: Stephen Colbert declares ‘gloves are off’ as cancelled Late Show host takes aim at Trump

Fox News: Colbert's manager knew of show's cancellation weeks before host, show axed for financial reasons: Report