Stephen Colbert Marks 10 Years on The Late Show With Jokes About Cancellation, Legacy, and What Comes Next

Stephen Colbert has officially celebrated a decade as host of The Late Show, a milestone that comes at a bittersweet time for both the comedian and late-night television. On September 8, 2025, the Emmy-winning host marked his 10th anniversary at the CBS desk once occupied by David Letterman. But the festivities unfolded under the looming shadow of the show’s announced cancellation, with CBS confirming earlier this summer that The Late Show will end in May 2026.

Colbert, 61, opened his anniversary episode with his trademark blend of humor and self-awareness. “Tonight is the 10th anniversary of The Late Show,” he told his audience. “Of course, every anniversary has its traditional gift. The first anniversary is paper, the fifth anniversary is wood, and the 10th anniversary is cancellation. Thank you, Paramount, for remembering!”

The episode began with a scripted sketch featuring Julianne Moore, where Colbert wakes up next to the Oscar-winning actress and tells her he dreamt of hosting a late-night show for ten years. “That’s a long time,” she replies. Colbert shoots back: “I thought it would be longer.” The bit set the tone for a night filled with reflection, gratitude, and plenty of sharp jokes about the irony of celebrating while also preparing to say goodbye.

As the episode continued, Colbert revisited highlights from his decade behind the desk, though in typical fashion, he filtered those memories through satire. When talking about Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy—who, like Colbert, was once a comedian before taking on a leadership role—Colbert joked about his own political ambitions. “It shows just what you can achieve when a former TV comedian runs for president,” he said to loud applause. Then he paused before delivering his punchline: “Which brings me to an important announcement. Starting in June of 2026, after I leave The Late Show, I will answer the call of destiny and get really into model railroading.”

He also poked fun at recent history, telling his audience that in 2024, “something happened (but I) don’t want to talk about it,” followed by, “in 2025, I also don’t want to talk about it for a related reason”—a not-so-subtle reference to Donald Trump’s re-election and CBS’s decision to cancel his program.

Even his interview with Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy turned into a moment of self-deprecating humor. When Murphy joked that he hadn’t worked this year, Colbert replied, “Anyone got a job? That’s my line.”

The moment was a reminder of how far Colbert has come since stepping into Letterman’s shoes in 2015. At the time, the decision to replace his satirical alter ego from The Colbert Report with his real persona was seen as a gamble. Viewers had grown accustomed to Colbert playing a fictional conservative pundit, and critics questioned whether he could succeed as himself. In his first episode, Colbert paid tribute to Letterman, saying, “His creative legacy is a high pencil mark on a door frame that we all have to measure ourselves against. But we will try to honor his achievement by doing the best show we can, and occasionally, making the network very mad at us.”

Over the years, the gamble paid off. Colbert found his footing, especially during the Trump presidency, when his sharp political monologues helped him surpass competitors like Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel in ratings. He became the most outspoken political voice in late-night, cementing his show as both a comedy platform and a cultural barometer.

But in July 2025, CBS stunned the industry with the announcement that The Late Show would end in 2026, with no successor to Colbert planned. The network cited financial reasons, pointing to the high cost of producing late-night programming in a shifting media environment. Still, many critics and fans questioned whether politics played a role in sidelining one of television’s most prominent Trump critics.

The backlash was swift. Fellow late-night hosts rallied around Colbert. David Letterman, rarely one to weigh in on network decisions, called the cancellation “pure cowardice.” Jimmy Kimmel openly dismissed claims that the show was losing massive amounts of money, telling Variety he believed CBS’s explanation was “nonsense.” Meanwhile, former host Conan O’Brien offered his own prediction, saying late-night as a genre may soon disappear altogether. Yet O’Brien added that Colbert “is going to evolve and shine brighter than ever in a new format that he controls completely.”

Fans have been left wondering what Colbert will do once his run ends. In a recent interview with comedians Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers, he hinted at a possible move into podcasting, though he has made no official announcements. True to form, he continues to deflect questions about the future with humor, while clearly recognizing the weight of his legacy.

For now, the anniversary episode stood as both a celebration of achievements and a reminder of the precarious state of late-night television. Colbert’s decade-long run has been marked by laughter, political satire, and a willingness to evolve, even as the industry itself faces seismic shifts.

As the countdown to May 2026 begins, Colbert’s place in the pantheon of late-night greats seems secure. Whether his next chapter involves podcasting, writing, or even model trains, one thing is certain: Stephen Colbert has left an indelible mark on American comedy and culture. His 10th anniversary may have come with the sting of cancellation, but it also underscored a truth Colbert himself has always embraced—that the best comedy is born from contradiction, and the sharpest punchlines come when the stakes are highest.