Colbert tells Trump to 'go f--- yourself’ after president taunts him over show cancellation
CBS late night host Stephen Colbert didn’t mince any words Monday night about his show’s cancellation, telling the president off in coarse fashion to audience cheers.
During the opening monologue of "The Late Show," Colbert dished on what led to CBS' decision to end his show and gave President Donald Trump a few jabs, joking that he won’t be holding back now that his show’s on borrowed time.
"And now for the next ten months, the gloves are off," he said, "I can finally speak unvarnished truth to power, and say what I really think about Donald Trump starting right now. I don’t care for him."
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Elsewhere, Colbert fired back at Trump for celebrating his show’s cancellation.
"I absolutely love that Colbert got fired," Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday night. "His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show."
"How dare you, sir?" Colbert responded on-air. "Would an untalented man be able to compose the following satirical witticism? Go f--- yourself."
The liberal audience cheered loudly in response.
CBS announced last Thursday that it would cancel "The Late Show" next May at the end of its broadcast season.
The network clarified that the cancellation was "purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night," and noted, "It is not related in any way to the show's performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount."
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During the Monday show, Colbert discussed CBS’ reasons for canceling the show, asking, "How could it purely be a financial decision if ‘The Late Show’ is number one in ratings?"
The host cited Puck News journalist Matt Belloni, who reported that Colbert’s show "has been losing more than $40 million a year."
"$40 million’s a big number. I could see us losing $24 million, but where would Paramount have possibly spent the other $16 million?" he asked, mocking CBS News and its parent company's recent $16 million settlement with Trump, following the president’s lawsuit against both.
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Meanwhile, Fox News Channel's "Gutfeld!" has surged to become late-night's highest-rated program. In the second quarter of 2025, the show notched 3 million viewers and 365,000 in the 25-54 age demographic at the 10 p.m. ET hour, putting it ahead of "The Late Show," "The Daily Show," and late-night programs on ABC and NBC.