Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, hosts of “The Tonight Show” and “Late Night,” have reacted to CBS’ Thursday decision to cancel “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” with Fallon saying he is “just as surprised as everyone.”
Fallon posted his reaction in an Instagram story on Friday.
Stephen is one of the sharpest, funniest hosts to ever do it. I really thought I’d ride this out with him for years to come. I’m sad that my family and friends will need a new show to watch every night at 11:30. But honestly, he’s really been a gentleman and a true friend over the years – going back to ‘The Colbert Report. I’m sure whatever he does next will be just as brilliant.
the late night veteran wrote and then Fallon added
For as great a comedian and host he is, Stephen Colbert is an even better person. I’m going to miss having him on TV every night but I’m excited he can no longer use the excuse that he’s ‘too busy to hang out’ with me.
Meyers paid tribute to Colbert on Instagram Friday morning as well, Meyers wrote
Fallon and Colbert have hosted their networks’ main late night shows for nearly the same length of time. Fallon began hosting “The Tonight Show” for NBC in February 2014, while Colbert started as the new host of “The Late Show” on CBS in September 2015. Meyers, on the other hand, replaced Fallon as the host of NBC’s “Late Night” in February 2014.
Fallon and Meyers made their statements less than a full day after Colbert made the surprising announcement during Thursday’s taping of “The Late Show” that the show will end in May 2026. Colbert said he had learned of CBS’ decision the night before. When the studio audience reacted with boos, Colbert responded, saying he agreed with them.
As Colbert mentioned, CBS is not just ending “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” but shutting down “The Late Show” completely, 32 years after it first aired with original host David Letterman in August 1993.
CBS called the move “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night” and emphasized Thursday that it is “not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Still, the decision has surprised many, especially since it came just days after Colbert publicly criticized CBS parent company Paramount’s $16 million lawsuit settlement with President Donald Trump. Colbert described the settlement as a “big fat bribe” meant to help secure Trump’s FCC approval of Paramount’s merger with Skydance.
Considering that, Fallon and Meyers are not the only ones reacting to “The Late Show” being canceled. Several well-known politicians have questioned CBS’ explanation, including California Senator Adam Schiff, who appeared on Thursday’s episode of “The Late Show.”
Just finished taping with Stephen Colbert who announced his show was cancelled. If Paramount and CBS ended the ‘Late Show’ for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better.
Schiff wrote on X
Back in March, CBS also canceled another late night program, “After Midnight,” after host Taylor Tomlinson shared that she wanted to leave the show and shift her focus to stand-up comedy and touring again. In June, Tomlinson told viewers, “I really wanted CBS to replace me.”
We get to do this show for each other every day all day, and I’ve had the pleasure and the responsibility of sharing what we do every day with you in front of this camera for the last 10 years. Let me tell you, it is a fantastic job. I wish somebody else was getting it.
Colbert told his “Late Show” viewers and in-studio audience members
Source: TheWrap
