The latest installment of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS concluded on Thursday evening, running for one hour and 17 minutes and featuring a multitude of celebrity appearances, including a special appearance by Paul McCartney at the end.
Emotionally, Colbert began the show by addressing the live audience at New York’s Ed Sullivan Theater and viewers at home, referring to The Late Show as “the joy machine” and expressing gratitude to the staff and audience for their support. Bandleader Louis Cato described the relationship as “emotional and mutual.”
The show ended with Colbert’s traditional sign-off: “Have a good show. Thanks for being here, and let’s do it, y’all!” as the theme song played. The final farewell highlighted some of the most unforgettable moments from The Late Show.
A star-studded lineup of celebrities made cameo appearances as part of a running joke. Each guest believed they were the last guest, leading to humorous reactions when they discovered they were not. From Bryan Cranston interrupting the monologue to Paul Rudd presenting a long poem and a unique retirement gift of bananas, the guests added to the entertainment.
Paul McCartney was the final guest, surprising Colbert with a signed Beatles portrait and sharing memories of performing at the Ed Sullivan Theater with The Beatles over 60 years ago.
During the show, mysterious green blips appeared on set, revealing an interdimensional wormhole. Colbert, along with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, interacted with the anomaly in a playful manner. The wormhole theme continued with appearances from late-night colleagues and references to the potential fate of their shows.
A musical interlude featured an acoustic performance of Elvis Costello’s song Jump Up, with Colbert joined by Costello, Cato, and former bandleader Jon Batiste. The show ended with a grand musical finale, led by McCartney, where everyone on stage embraced the spirit of joy and Colbert allowed McCartney to turn off the lights of the theater for the last time.
CBS had previously announced the cancellation of The Late Show, attributing it to financial reasons. The timing of the announcement, following Colbert’s criticism of Paramount Global’s settlement with former President Donald Trump, led to speculation about political motives. Colbert addressed the cancellation with humor in the finale, while discussions about the reasons for his departure continued.
The conclusion of Thursday’s episode marked the end of Colbert’s 11-year tenure. Moving forward, CBS will fill the vacant time slot with Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen starting Friday.
