Colbert shared the news with his studio audience ahead of the show Thursday, telling them CBS canceled the show. Read what he said.

“Given Paramount’s recent capitulation to President Trump in the CBS News lawsuit, the Writers Guild of America has significant concerns that The Late Show’s cancelation is a bribe, sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump Administration as the company looks for merger approval,” it noted (see full statement below).

CBS has cancelled The Late Show and announced Stephen Colbert will serve as final host until May 2026 days after he called out his parent company's "bribe."

Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart slammed Paramount for making a deal with Trump, serving notice they won't be silenced by their parent company.

Colbert followed “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart’s attack of the deal one week earlier. Stewart works for Comedy Central, also owned by Paramount, making the two comics the most visible internal critics of the $16 million settlement that was announced on July 1.

Stephen Colbert went off on his employer, Paramount, on Monday after the company decided to settle with President Trump in his lawsuit against the network.