Stephen Colbert thinks theories linking his show’s cancellation to politics are ‘reasonable’

Late-night host Stephen Colbert responded to claims that CBS canceled his show for political reasons, saying those ideas were “reasonable,” but added that wasn’t his own reaction to the decision.

GQ’s Zach Baron asked Colbert to respond to Democratic lawmakers such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who both wanted to know whether CBS canceled the show for political reasons.

CBS announced in July that it would cancel “The Late Show” and that Colbert’s final episode would air in May 2026. The network said the move was purely a financial decision.

“I mean, that’s not my job. That’s not my reaction to it. My reaction as a professional in show business is to go: That is the network’s decision,” Colbert responded.

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Stephen Colbert attends the WSJ Magazine 2025 Innovator Awards at MoMA on October 29, 2025, in New York City.   (Taylor Hill/Getty Images)

“I can understand why people would have that reaction because CBS or the parent corporation — I’m not going to say who made that decision, because I don’t know; no one’s ever going to tell us — decided to cut a check for $16 million to the president of the United States over a lawsuit that their own lawyers, Paramount’s own lawyers, said is completely without merit. And it is self-evident that that is damaging to the reputation of the network, the corporation, and the news division,” he said.

He said it was “reasonable” for people to speculate about possible connections between the settlement and his show’s cancellation.

“But my side of the street is clean, and I have no interest in picking up a broom or adding to refuse on the other side of the street. Not my 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 that’s a fruitful relationship for me to have with my network for the next nine months, for me to engage in that speculation,” Colbert continued.

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Host Stephen Colbert during his show, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” on July 21, 2025.  (Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images)

Colbert is a strong Democratic Party supporter and helped raise money for former President Joe Biden.

The show’s cancellation came two days after CBS News reached a $16 million settlement with President Donald Trump over his lawsuit against the network for its handling of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Colbert weighed in on the lawsuit during his show, and accused his employer of offering a “big fat bribe” to the president.

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The late-night host explained in the GQ interview that CBS did not call him to inform him that his show was going to end in May.

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“My manager told me,” he told the magazine. “They told him, and he told me.”