It's difficult not to see how an ownership change impacted 'The Late Show' franchise, but the move also reveals stubborn truths about the cost of the programming vs. cheaper and infinite YouTube rivals.

Stephen Colbert slammed Paramount's $16 million settlement with Donald Trump just three days before 'The Late Show' was canceled. The network attributed its decision to financial restraints, unrelated

A new report from Puck's Matt Belloni is shedding light on the finances that led to CBS' bombshell cancellation of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert."

Stephen Colbert shocked his audience and late night fans, announcing CBS had decided to cancel his long-running show. “The Late Show” is the most-watched late night talk show on television, but it is expensive to produce and has faced declining ratings.

With the hosts Merv Griffin, Pat Sajak, David Letterman and Stephen Colbert, CBS has taken many runs at late-night TV. Some were more successful than others.

“CBS canceled Colbert’s show just THREE DAYS after Colbert called out CBS parent company Paramount for its $16M settlement with Trump – a deal that looks like bribery,” Senator Elizabeth Warren wrote on X. “America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.”

CBS brass say they pulled the plug on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” because of its punishing losses and claim politics had nothing to do with it, The Post has learned.

CBS’ decision to cut ties with Stephen Colbert and its decades-old “Late Show” franchise come next May will leave a major hole in the format — but one that has been widening. TV networks have been cutting costs at their late-night mainstays for the past few years.

'Tracker' Shocker! Hit CBS Series Loses Half Its Main Cast Ahead of Season 3 first appeared on Parade on Jul 19, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 19, 2025, where it first appeared.