Stephen Colbert reveals how CBS 'saved' him
Stephen Colbert has reflected on his upcoming exit from The Late Show.
Stephen Colbert thinks CBS might have "saved" him by ending The Late Show.
The 62-year-old comedian is set to host the last-ever episode of The Late Show later this week, after CBS announced in 2025 that it was axing the late-night TV talk show, and Stephen is now feeling philosophical about the decision.
Stephen - who has hosted the show since 2015 - told People: "I mean, you can't do this forever. You have to think about, well, when is the right time to end your tenure? I didn't think this soon, but I mean, who knows?
"Maybe CBS saved my life because it takes a lot of bone marrow to do the show every day, and now I'll be stepping down with enough time, enough energy to do other things that I want to do."
Stephen also revealed how he'll be spending his first day after The Late Show ends.
The TV star said: "I'm going to my brother's wedding in Washington D.C.
"My [eight] brothers and sisters and [their] husbands and wives are coming to the last show, and then we're all getting on the train the next day and going down to D.C. to go to Tommy's wedding."
Stephen is looking forward to the focus being on his brother, rather than himself for once.
He said: "It's great, I love it. The next day focus is not on me, focus is on my brother. So much better. We'll get drunk and we'll sing. We all think we have good voices. That's the great danger of our family, especially the men. It'll be great."
Stephen announced the axing of The Late Show in July 2025.
The comedian - who replaced Letterman at the helm in 2015 - thanked CBS and TV viewers at the time for their support of the show.
He said: "I’m not being replaced. This is all just going away. I do want to say that the folks at CBS have been great partners … And I’m grateful to the audience, you, who have joined us every night, in here, out there, and all around the world."
