CBS brass say they pulled the plug on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” due to its punishing losses — pegged between $40 million and $50 million a yr — and declare politics had nothing to do with it, The Put up has discovered.
The 61-year-old host acquired canned simply days after he took a dig on the Tiffany Community over its $16 million settlement with Donald Trump over a controversial “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris because the community’s dad or mum Paramount negotiates with the Trump administration regulatory approval for its $8 billion sale to unbiased studio Skydance.
“I’m offended, and I don’t know if something will ever restore my belief on this firm,” Colbert stated of the truce in his Monday night time monologue.
“However simply taking a stab at it, I’d say $16 million would assist.”
‘Will get no promoting’
However scathing jokes on the expense of CBS brass wasn’t the issue, in response to insiders.
As an alternative, the community’s bosses might now not abdomen the truth that Colbert has been plagued with an more and more dire scarcity of advertisers.
That’s regardless of Colbert’s No, 1 rankings in his time slot and his standing as a key face for the Tiffany Community.
In the long run, Paramount’s co-CEO George Cheeks determined to kill the present, sources stated.
“Colbert will get no promoting and late night time is a troublesome spot,” stated an individual with direct information of CBS’s choice.
“Colbert could be No. 1, however who watches late night time TV anymore?”
Some Democrats voiced suspicion, citing the host’s left-wing leanings and CBS proprietor Paramount’s pressing want to realize an OK from the Trump administration for the merger with Skydance, the Hollywood studio behind the “Mission: Unimaginable” franchise.
“CBS canceled Colbert’s present simply THREE DAYS after Colbert referred to as out CBS dad or mum firm Paramount for its $16M settlement with Trump — a deal that appears like bribery,” lefty Sen. Elizabeth Warren wrote on X.
“America deserves to know if his present was canceled for political causes.”
Skydance CEO David Ellison is the son of Donald Trump pal and tech billionaire Larry Ellison.
As The Put up first reported, CBS simply paid $16 million to Trump and has agreed to run tens of millions of {dollars} extra in MAGA-friendly advertisements to settle the president’s lawsuit alleging that “60 Minutes” deceptively edited its 2024 interview with Kamala Harris to make her look higher.
Trump, in the meantime, celebrated Colbert’s canning in a Friday morning publish on Fact Social.
“I completely love that Colbert acquired fired,” the president wrote.
“His expertise was even lower than his rankings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is subsequent. Has even much less expertise than Colbert!”
Fervent denials
However regardless of Ellison’s Trump ties, sources stated Skydance and its companions at Redbird Capital — the personal fairness agency that may assist run CBS as soon as the deal is cleared — solely heard the information of the present’s impending cancellation simply earlier than it was introduced late Thursday.
“Skydance had nothing to do with this,” one particular person near the choice stated.
“Colbert loses $40 million to $50 million a yr, so George Cheeks simply determined to drag the plug.”
The present’s dominance in its time slot belies sharp declines in viewership as youthful viewers transfer away from conventional TV.
“The Late Present” boasts practically 2 million whole viewers and 200,000 viewers in the important thing 25-24 “demo” — making it No. 1 in its time slot.
However, that’s a pointy decline versus the numbers it racked up in its heyday.
The advert information agency Guideline estimates that CBS’s late-night exhibits collectively drew $220 million in advert income in 2024 — simply half the $439 million they drew in 2018.
RedBird’s Jeff Shell, the previous head of NBCUniversal who will run the community as soon as the deal is completed, has been crunching the numbers and discovering that CBS is a “melting ice dice” with its losses and value overruns, a supply stated.
‘Fact-based’ flip
The plan is to reinforce CBS Sports activities and spend money on “truth-based” information at a community that conservatives have lengthy ripped for its alleged liberal bias.
A Paramount spokesman declined to remark and wouldn’t deny that huge losses have been tied to the present’s cancellation.
Trump’s lawsuit was impeding the approval of the deal by the Trump Federal Communications Fee.
The Put up has discovered that Ellison is now telling those that with the lawsuit settled the Skydance-Paramount deal will get FCC approval by mid-August.
Whereas Ellison is predicting imminent regulatory approval, it can come at a value: FCC chairman Brendan Carr is more likely to demand circumstances to treatment what he believes is left-wing information bias in programming that violates company “public curiosity” guidelines that govern native broadcasting versus cable.
