Stephen Colbert Jokes About His Next Move After Late Show Cancellation—Would Anyone Even Hire Him?
With The Late Show ending, Colbert isn’t holding back—his hilarious take on unemployment has fans wondering what’s next for the comedy legend.
Stephen Colbert won big, got a long ovation, and then basically asked the room if anyone was hiring. Not a bit. It was a joke with a point, because his late-night run is on a countdown clock.
The short version
- July 2025: Colbert announced CBS is canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, with the final episode slated for May 2026.
- CBS President George Cheeks framed it as a financial call, not a creative or performance issue.
- Sept. 15, 2025: Colbert wins the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show Series and uses his acceptance speech to crack a job-hunting joke and thank CBS.
The Emmys moment
Colbert took the stage to a long, loud ovation and did what he does: found the laugh and the subtext at the same time. He cracked that he even brought his resume and, more pointedly, that he has a couple hundred talented people who will be available right after the show wraps.
"While I have your attention, is anyone hiring? ... I have 200 very well-qualified candidates with me here tonight who'll be available in June."
Yes, that June — June 2026, right after the May finale. He kept it gracious too, thanking CBS for letting him be part of the late-night lineage and hoping the format lives on once his version sunsets. He closed with a cheerful little rallying cry to aim higher on the way out the door.
About that cancellation
This is the inside baseball part. The decision landed in July, with the network saying the quiet part out loud: late night is expensive, the economics are rough, and this wasn’t about ratings or content. Cheeks put it plainly, and CBS followed with a statement that tried to shut down any alternative theories before they started:
"This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show's performance, content, or other matters happening at Paramount."
That last bit is doing some work, because the timing raised eyebrows. The cancellation arrived shortly after Paramount settled a lawsuit filed by President Trump. CBS says there’s no connection. The coincidence is still… noticeable.
What it means
Colbert’s Emmy night gag lands because it’s true: he and roughly 200 staffers will be free agents come early summer 2026. He’s clearly proud of the run and the team, and he’s not burning the bridge on the way out. But the message was unmistakable — if you’re in the market for a proven late-night machine, he just put the whole shop on the market.