Colbert’s final year marked by attacks on Trump, celebs kissing his ring

Filled with relentless attacks on President Donald Trump, leftist speeches and celebrities kissing his ring, Stephen Colbert’s final year on CBS comes to an end as the curtain falls on his Thursday night show.

Colbert has been the face of “The Late Show” since his predecessor David Letterman resigned in 2015. The outspoken liberal turned CBS’s long-running late-night show into #Resistance television, devoting monologue after monologue to attacking Trump while elevating Democrats and strengthening their agenda.

Colbert began his year-long farewell journey after CBS announced it was canceling “The Late Show” in July 2025. “The gloves will be off for the next 10 months,” Colbert said in July.

COLBERT APPEARED ON CBS AND SAID THE CANCELLATION STRENGTHENED THE ‘KNEELING’ NARRATIVE TOWARDS TRUMP

“Go fuck yourself,” Colbert casually quipped on the show after the president mocked him about the cancellation.

Colbert didn’t hold back when it came to attacking the Trump administration, and the show was filled with guests who shared his ideology. MS NOW hosts Jen Psaki, Chris Hayes and Rachel Maddow and CNN hosts Jake Tapper, Kaitlan Collins and Anderson Cooper appeared on the show, while other liberal late-night hosts such as Jimmy Kimmel, John Oliver and Seth Meyers also visited the “Late Show.”

Former President Barack Obama laughed as he disparaged Trump on the show earlier this month and suggested Colbert would make a better president himself.

DEMOCRATS APPROACH STEPHEN COLBERT FOR BEING ‘REAL TO HIS POWER’ AFTER CANCELLATION OF CBS SHOW

Former President Barack Obama and Stephen Colbert. (Scott Kowalchyk/CBS)

You. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Jon Ossoff, Sen. Mark Kelly, former Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Rep. Adam Schiff, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Rep. Jim Clyburn, Rep. Ruben Gallego, former Secretary John Kerry, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, former First Lady Michelle Obama and Biden-era press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre paid tribute as “The Late Show” often serves as a revolving door for Democratic Party leadership as Colbert prepares to sign off.

Far-left actors Mark Ruffalo and Jane Fonda were among the Hollywood elite who stopped by to fawn over Colbert during his final months on the air. Bette Midler even attacked Trump by serenading Colbert with a parody of his famous song “Wind Beneath My Wings” and encouraging the audience to sing “You never kissed an orange…”

COLBERT SLAMS PARAMOUNT FOR DEALING WITH TRUMP, ACCUSES HIS PARENTAL COMPANY OF OFFERING A ‘MAJOR BRIBE’

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel joins Stephen Colbert’s Late Show on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. (CBS/LateShowStephenColbert)

Even Hollywood trade publication Variety noted that the show’s final months were largely spent roasting Colbert.

“What was broadcast was an increasingly bloated tribute to the show’s host. The endless bouquets thrown Colbert’s way were starting to make the studio smell a little sickening,” wrote Variety reporter Daniel D’Addario.

D’Addario continued: “The show’s focus on its host’s misfortune became overwhelming and somewhat dramatic, especially since so many other institutions were in crisis.” “With everything going on in the world, do we have to have a months-long celebration of life for a comedian who is out of business?”

USA TODAY CALLS STEPHEN COLBERT, AMERICA’S LEAST FUNNIEST COMEDIAN, ‘BRAVE FUNNY AVENGER’

Rep. James Talarico and Stephen Colbert on CBS’ “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in February. (Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images)

In February, Colbert caused a stir by claiming that his interview with Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was blocked by CBS due to equal time constraints. Instead of televising the Talarico session, it was streamed on the show’s YouTube channel. Many have suggested that Colbert was doing the publicity to help Talarico defeat her fierce rival, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, in the primary because she would be more palatable in the general election.

CBS denied Colbert’s claim, and The New York Times eventually reported that Talarico knew well in advance that the interview would air only online. “You had a Democratic candidate who understood the way the news media works, and he apparently leveraged all of your previous ideas to pull off a scam to raise money and get clicks,” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr told reporters.

When Colbert and his guests weren’t making fun of Trump, they were often criticizing CBS for pulling the plug on the show. Colbert’s feud with CBS had begun before his show was canceled; He was outraged that then-CBS parent Paramount had settled an “election interference” lawsuit with Trump for at least $16 million (an amount that could reach north of $30 million) before Skydance Media acquired the company.

Late-night host Stephen Colbert took aim at his employer by mocking the Paramount-Skydance merger with pee jokes after his show was canceled by the network. (CBS/Colbert)

“I believe there’s a technical term in legal circles for such complicated financial emotions with a sitting government official. It’s a ‘massive bribe,’ because all of this is occurring while Paramount’s owners are trying to get the Trump administration to approve the sale of our network to the new owner, Skydance!” said Colbert.

“You can take our money, but you can never take our dignity,” he continued. “But you can buy our honor for as little as $16 million. We need cash.”

Days later, CBS announced that the final episode of “The Late Show” would air in May 2026, and the FCC approved Skydance’s acquisition of Paramount shortly after. CBS insisted that canceling “The Late Show” was “a purely financial decision in a challenging environment for late night,” but many believe the decision was made to appease Trump and the FCC before the merger.

Colbert has since regularly criticized CBS and frequently used his platform on the network to criticize its management.

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Stephen Colbert and David Letterman took aim at CBS in a sketch on Thursday as they threw furniture and more from the roof of “The Late Show” on May 14, 2026. (TheLateShow/CBS)

“My cancellation reinforced the narrative that CBS had already created around itself that there was a knee-jerk mood that even their lawyers said there was no reason to cut the check, and then they did it and gave no reason why they changed their minds. And then all of a sudden they got their broadcast license,” Colbert told The Hollywood Reporter this month.

Colbert recently welcomed Letterman, who celebrated the end of his old show by throwing the CBS logo and smashing furniture in the building. As he signed, Letterman told Colbert: “Thank you for everything you’ve done for our country.”

Colbert asked the comedian if he had any final words for viewers, and Letterman said he had something to say to CBS.

“In the words of the great Ed Murrow, good night and good luck, motherfucker!” he said.

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Variety’s D’Addario observed: “Colbert deserved better treatment from CBS, but watching someone beam as he receives laurels after laurels doesn’t make an argument for his show’s relevance, since it’s frankly not very good TV and — for this fiercely political host — it’s out of touch with the concerns of the people who turn to ‘The Late Show’ for its political perspective.”

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn, Alexander Hall and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.