{"id":241623,"date":"2026-05-21T21:24:04","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T21:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/ahead-of-stephen-colberts-final-show-jimmy-kimmel-tells-viewers-dont-ever-watch-cbs-again\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T21:24:04","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T21:24:04","slug":"ahead-of-stephen-colberts-final-show-jimmy-kimmel-tells-viewers-dont-ever-watch-cbs-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/ahead-of-stephen-colberts-final-show-jimmy-kimmel-tells-viewers-dont-ever-watch-cbs-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Ahead of Stephen Colbert&#8217;s Final Show, Jimmy Kimmel Tells Viewers: &#8216;Don&#8217;t Ever Watch&#8217; CBS Again"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re just hours away from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehollywoodgossip.com\/2025\/12\/donald-trump-demands-cbs-cancel-stephen-colbert-right-now\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Stephen Colbert\u2019s final episode of <em>The Late Show<\/em><\/a>, and fans and friends are eagerly paying tribute to the beloved comic.<\/p>\n<p>As we previously reported, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehollywoodgossip.com\/2025\/07\/the-late-show-canceled-by-cbs-after-30-seasons\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CBS decided to cancel Colbert\u2019s show<\/a> in a surprise move that many believe to be politically motivated.<\/p>\n<p>No stranger to political controversy himself, Colbert\u2019s longtime friend and fellow late night host Jimmy Kimmel used his platform to address the situation last night.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><noscript><\/noscript><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"765\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-1024x765.jpg\" alt=\"Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel speak onstage during the 71st Emmy Awards at Microsoft Theater on September 22, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.\" class=\"wp-image-555514 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-1024x765.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-768x574.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-2048x1530.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-480x360.jpg 480w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-320x240.jpg 320w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-960x717.jpg 960w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-1080x807.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-1200x896.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-1176443837-scaled.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel speak onstage during the 71st Emmy Awards at Microsoft Theater on September 22, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.<span class=\"image-caption-credit\"> (Photo by Kevin Winter\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>During his monologue, Kimmel delivered an emotional tribute to his colleague while also taking a very public shot at CBS.<\/p>\n<p>And, in true Kimmel fashion, he managed to sneak in a joke that was only half-joking.<\/p>\n<p>The ABC host began by announcing his show would not air opposite Colbert\u2019s final broadcast out of respect for his friend and the staff behind <em>The Late Show<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will be off tomorrow night out of respect for our colleague and friend Stephen Colbert, and the writers, producers, and staff and crew at <em>The Late Show<\/em>, whose final show on CBS airs opposite ours,\u201d Kimmel said.<\/p>\n<p>But while the gesture was gracious, Kimmel also made it abundantly clear that he is still not over CBS pulling the plug on Colbert\u2019s program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think you know how I feel about the fact that they\u2019re being pushed out,\u201d Kimmel said. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-9-16 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"A fond farewell to Stephen Colbert and our pals at The Late Show \ud83d\ude4c\ud83d\udc99\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YA4v5RvGQGI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI hope the people who did the pushing feel ashamed of themselves tonight \u2014 although I know they probably won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kimmel went on to praise Colbert and the <em>Late Show<\/em> writers and producers, celebrating what they accomplished over the past 11 years while emphasizing that there was never any real bad blood between the two shows.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think it is most important to congratulate Stephen and the team at <em>The Late Show<\/em> for all the great work over the last 11 years \u2014 and all the great work they will continue to do in other venues, I have no doubt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEveryone at that show has always been very gracious to us. We never felt like we were competing against them. It was nothing like the old days of late-night. I always loved being on Stephen\u2019s show. I loved having him on ours. I hope we\u2019re able to do that again. I hope he comes to visit as many times as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then came Jimmy\u2019s digs at the Trump-friendly bigwigs at CBS\u2019 parent company, Paramount.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DYlRaRWhCWi\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"\/>\n<p>\u201cOn behalf of everyone at our show, we want to say to everyone at your show: It has been a pleasure to work alongside you,\u201d Kimmel concluded. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI will be watching tomorrow night. I hope that those of you who watch our show will also tune in to CBS for the last time. Don\u2019t ever watch it again. But watch tomorrow night to wish Stephen a fond farewell.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>CBS recently announced that <em>The Late Show<\/em> would be replaced by <em>Comics Unleashed<\/em>, the long-running stand-up clip series created by Byron Allen.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, Kimmel also mocked the decision during his annual roast at the broadcast upfronts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs you know, CBS is turning 11:35 p.m. into a time slot least likely to offend the President with a rerun of Comics Unleashed from 2007 featuring Paula Poundstone and Andy Dick,\u201d Kimmel joked. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPoor Stephen. It\u2019s bad enough to lose your job. Imagine getting replaced by the owner of the Weather Channel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As for Colbert, the longtime host appears to be trying to keep things in perspective \u2014 at least publicly.<\/p>\n<p>In an exit interview with <em>The Hollywood Reporter<\/em>, Colbert reflected on the end of his late-night run.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re all big boys. I got to do this for 21 years. What is there to complain about, really?\u201d he said. \u201cI knew that the show had to end at some time. I did not expect it to end this way. But my staff are the only people I\u2019m worried about.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After more than a decade behind <em>The Late Show<\/em> desk, Colbert\u2019s final guest lineup remains under wraps.<\/p>\n<p>But one thing seems certain: Kimmel \u2014 and millions of other fans \u2014 will be watching.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async defer src=\"https:\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehollywoodgossip.com\/2026\/05\/ahead-of-stephen-colberts-final-show-jimmy-kimmel-tells-viewers-dont-ever-watch-cbs-again\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Reading Time: 3 minutes We\u2019re just hours away from Stephen Colbert\u2019s final episode of The Late Show, and fans and friends are eagerly paying tribute to the beloved comic. As we previously reported, CBS decided to cancel Colbert\u2019s show in a surprise move that many believe to be politically motivated. No stranger to political controversy [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":241625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-241623","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hollywood"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241623","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=241623"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241623\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/241625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=241623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=241623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=241623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}