Stephen Colbert didn’t hold back Monday night as he responded to Donald Trump’s gleeful reaction to the cancellation of The Late Show.
The long-running CBS late-night program is set to wrap after its 11th season, with the network citing financial reasons for pulling the plug. But the announcement has sparked speculation about political motivations—speculation that Trump himself fueled with a post on Truth Social, in which he mocked Colbert and cheered the show’s demise.
“I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings,” Trump wrote.
Colbert, never one to shy away from a confrontation, hit back during his opening monologue on Monday’s show. After reading Trump’s comment aloud in a tone dripping with sarcasm, Colbert snapped into what the show labeled the Eloquence Cam—and looked straight into the camera.
“Go f*** yourself,” he said bluntly, with the profanity bleeped for broadcast. The studio audience erupted in applause and chants of “Stephen! Stephen! Stephen!”
The moment was later shared on The Late Show’s Instagram account with the caption: “Sticks and stones may break our bones but presidential turds can never hurt us.”
Show’s Cancellation Sparks Outrage, Protests
Colbert had announced the show’s impending end last Thursday, revealing on air that CBS informed him just the day before. The news immediately set off a wave of reactions, both online and in the streets, with fans rallying outside the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City demanding, “Trump must go, Colbert must stay.”
CBS insists the cancellation was due to declining ratings across late-night TV and emphasized it was a “purely financial decision.” But many found the timing suspicious.
Just days earlier, Colbert had publicly criticized CBS over its $16 million settlement with Trump, calling the payout a “big fat bribe” meant to smooth over the network’s parent company, Paramount Global, ahead of its high-stakes merger with Skydance.
With tensions between late-night comedy and politics reaching a boiling point, Colbert’s response signals he’s not going quietly—and neither are his fans.
