After CBS announced the cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in July, visceral reactions were shared by a number of fans as well as celebrities. In terms of stars, disappointed messages from Jimmy Kimmel, Bowen Yang, Jimmy Fallon and more flooded social media. Other big names have continued to express their disagreement with the decision to take Colbert off the air in 2026. However, an insider is now claiming that Colbert is losing support, and they also shared the alleged reason for that.
Stephen Colbert has been very vocal about the demise of his show, as he’s brought it up on air a few times since he solemnly shared the news amid a late-July broadcast. The veteran host has, nevertheless, poked fun at the situation and taken jabs at his employers. On the July 21 edition of The Late Show, Colbert joked that his bosses may have taken him off the air, but they “made one mistake” – they “left [him] alive.” As Colbert continues that habit, a source tells The National Enquirer that his sentiments are now losing him supporters:
When his show was first canceled, people were on his side. His fellow late-night talk show hosts were backing him, and colleagues were cheering him on for sticking up for himself, but he’s doubling down too aggressively, and now support is waning. The feeling is he’s going off a ledge and it’s not a smart move.
The unnamed individual also claims that some are starting to view the former Colbert Report host as somewhat “bitter.” On top of that, there’s also purportedly a belief that if Colbert doesn’t “calm down and stop dragging people’s names,” he’ll “end up in legal trouble.” Of course, all of these allegations should be taken with a massive grain of salt at this time.
News of The Late Show’s cancellation at the Eye Network was formally announced by the company’s big brass. Execs attributed the decision to “financial” variables, though some have been skeptical about that. Ahead of the announcement, Stephen Colbert openly criticized his employers for settling a $16 million lawsuit with U.S. President Donald Trump. (That legal move also occurred while CBS’ parent company, Paramount Global, was aiming to finalize its merger with Skydance Media.) All in all, some believe the move was politically motivated, and the Writers Guild has also called for an investigation.
Insiders have dropped claims about how network executives are feeling about the on-air comments Stephen Colbert has made since news of his talk show’s axing was made public. Supposedly, Colbert is rubbing people the wrong way with his methods, and an unnamed exec claimed that, at this point, he’s essentially “daring” them to fire him. All the while, it’s also been alleged that Colbert’s staff is not feeling good about the show coming to an end.
While this latest source claims support from A-listers is “waning,” some have spoken in favor of The Late Show and its hosts as of late. Andy Cohen opined that CBS was “cooked” for taking the program off the air. Also, John Oliver also believes the decision is “incredibly sad,” as there now won’t be an opportunity for the show to be handed off to another host and writing staff in the future. Oliver and Cohen were also just two of the various celebrities who appeared on TLS to take part in an in-studo gag, which can be seen below:
As of this writing, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is set to conclude its run in May 2026. The general public will just have to wait and see how Colbert continues to address the situation on air and just how many stars continue to openly voice support for him.
