Following the merger between Paramount and Skydance, Stephen Colbert commented on CBS’s decision to cancel his late-night talk show. CBS Entertainment Group is part of the Paramount-Skydance Corporation.
+ Donald Trump celebrates $16 million deal with Paramount
“I’m not going to say who made that decision, because I don’t know; no one will ever tell us,” said Stephen Colbert in an interview with GQ magazine, published on Monday (3).
The host’s interview took place before ABC pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off the air for six days after comments about the death of Charlie Kirk.
CBS announced in July that Stephen Colbert’s show would end in May 2026.
On July 24, eight days after announcing the end of “The Late Show,” the Federal Communications Commission approved the merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media.
+Watch Stephen Colbert’s statement about the end of his show
Although the network claimed that the cancellation was “purely a financial decision,” many criticized CBS for the timing of the announcement, since at the time Stephen Colbert had criticized Paramount Global.
The host had commented on a deal the company made with Donald Trump in a lawsuit that, according to legal analysts, should have been dismissed under the First Amendment.
“My reaction, as an entertainment professional, is: that was the network’s decision,” Colbert told GQ.
Regarding theories that Paramount ended his show to please Trump, he said that wasn’t his problem.
“So, people can have their theories. I have my feelings about not doing the show anymore, but you’d have to show me why it would be productive for me to maintain that kind of speculation about the network for the next nine months,” concluded Stephen Colbert.
Photos: Instagram @stephenathome. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
