New York, New York - The Late Show frontman Stephen Colbert will host the final edition of the 33-year-old cultural institution on Thursday night, after it was canceled by CBS as the network courts President Donald Trump.

The show – which Colbert has hosted since 2015 – was axed after he mocked the broadcaster's $16 million settlement with Trump, who charged them with allegedly "maliciously" editing an interview of his Democratic election rival Kamala Harris.

Colbert called it a "big fat bribe."

CBS has insisted the decision to cancel The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the ratings leader in the time slot, was purely financial – and that it was a coincidence the move came as CBS parent company Paramount lobbied for government approval of its $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media.

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Around that time, CBS brought in Bari Weiss, a right-wing journalist without significant TV experience, to run its news division.

The identity of the final night's guests remained a closely held secret early Thursday.

On the penultimate night, rock music legend Bruce Springsteen joined The Late Show to sing his Streets of Minneapolis anti-Trump protest song and to attack the Republican leader.

And Colbert was clearly moved when he was joined in his studio by fellow late-night hosts Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver, who paid tribute in the final days.

Kimmel was briefly taken off the air in September 2025 by his network ABC after complaints about a remark he made over the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Trump has repeatedly attacked the media and press freedom since returning to office, using lawsuits and regulatory threats to retaliate for unflattering news coverage and jokes.

The president has long been a fierce critic of late-night talk show hosts and their jabs at him. Trump has called Colbert a "pathetic trainwreck" who should be "put to sleep."

Colbert made his name playing a fictitious version of himself, embodying the type of conservative blowhard beloved by Fox News viewers – and derided by the left.

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He first played the sharp-suited but dim-witted character on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart before getting a spin-off, The Colbert Report.

Colbert ascended to the pinnacle of late-night TV when he was named host of the CBS flagship, shedding the character and employing his own voice.

Colbert has been coy about his next steps, but announced he will be a writer on a forthcoming Lord of the Rings movie.

Rival late-night hosts were all due to air reruns Thursday out of respect for Colbert's swansong, which has an afterparty themed "Fired and festive!"