The summer of 2025 became a nightmare for late-night television hosts. CBS made the shocking decision to cancel Stephen Colbert‘s The Late Show. Next was ABC; it briefly suspended Jimmy Kimmel over a Charlie Kirk-related “MAGA” comment, though the network reinstated his show a week later.
Now, as Colbert’s show approaches its May 2026 conclusion, the comedian asked his fellow late-night hosts Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver to “make a case” for their line of work. In response, Kimmel pointed out that the craving for late-night comedy is still alive and that people use various options like YouTube, social media and cable to tune in.
With fictional series like HBO’s Hacks showcasing the pressures of the late-night TV world, viewers are asking if the long-running staple might be dying at the hands of their parent companies.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert — Ending
CBS announced in July 2025 that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will end in May 2026. Network executives cited finances as the reason behind the cancelation.
“We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire The Late Show franchise in May of 2026,” CBS said in a statement. “We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television. This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Two months later, Colbert and his staff took home the Emmy Award for best talk series.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! — Still on the Air
An ABC spokesperson revealed in a brief September 2025 statement that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would “be pre-empted indefinitely.” The announcement came shortly after the comedian said, “The MAGA Gang (is) desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it. In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
In response to Kimmel’s comment, Brendan Carr, the head of the Federal Communications Commission, criticized Kimmel on Benny Johnson’s show and threatened to “do this the easy way or the hard way,” according to multiple outlets.
Not a big fan of Jimmy Kimmel, but if you think his show should be canceled for this, you’re a hack and a total fraud who should never pretend to care about free speech pic.twitter.com/FSiktbva6y
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) September 17, 2025
“This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said. “Disney needs to see some change here, but the individual licensed stations that are taking their content, it’s time for them to step up and say this, you know, garbage to the extent that that’s what comes down the pipe in the future isn’t something that we think serves the needs of our local communities. … There’s calls for Kimmel to be fired. I think you could certainly see a path forward for suspension over this.”
Nevertheless, ABC reinstated the show about a week later, and Kimmel is still on the air.
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon — Still on the Air
Jimmy Fallon‘s late-night show has not faced an outstanding problem from NBC yet. However, Donald Trump has called for his cancelation in addition to that of other comedians.
Late Night with Seth Meyers — Still on the Air
Seth Meyers has not had an outward issue with his network, NBC.
After Midnight — Canceled
The CBS Taylor Tomlinson–hosted show ended after two seasons in June 2025. Tomlinson chose to resume her stand-up career after leaving the show on her own accord.
Real Time with Bill Maher — Still on the Air
HBO’s Bill Maher has not publicly stated any imminent doom with his show.
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen — Still on the Air
Andy Cohen has not cited any pending problems with his network, Bravo, an NBCU network.
Last Week Tonight with Jon Oliver — Still on the Air
Jon Oliver is still on the air with his network, HBO.
Gutfeld! — Still on the Air
Greg Gutfeld still hosts his show on the Fox News Channel.
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