{"id":26156,"date":"2026-05-24T14:14:45","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T14:14:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=26156"},"modified":"2026-05-24T14:14:45","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T14:14:45","slug":"no-this-cant-be-how-it-ends-%f0%9f%98%ad%f0%9f%93%ba-stephen-colbert-didnt-just-say-goodbye-to-the-late-show-he-detonated-an-emotional","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=26156","title":{"rendered":"\u201c\u2018NO\u2026 THIS CAN\u2019T BE HOW IT ENDS.\u2019 \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\udcfa Stephen Colbert didn\u2019t just say goodbye to The Late Show \u2014 he detonated an emotional late-night masterpiece that left viewers stunned, nostalgic, and completely shattered. What began as a farewell quickly spiraled into something far bigger: Paul McCartney\u2019s deeply emotional return, surprise celebrity appearances, surreal comedy chaos, and one final curtain call that felt like television history collapsing in real time."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Stephen Colbert\u2019s Late Show Finale Packed In Paul McCartney, Endless Surprise Guests, A Black Hole\u2026 And A Classic TV Homage<\/p>\n<p>How does one put a bow on TV\u2019s No. 1 late-night talk show after a cancellation that still feels premature?<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-4\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-2\"><\/div>\n<p>Over the past two weeks alone, Stephen Colbert reunited with fellow \u201cStrike Force Five\u201d hosts Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver; shared the stage with former Comedy Central cohort Jon Stewart; welcomed back original \u201cLate Show\u201d host David Letterman and longtime bandleader Paul Shaffer; got roasted by Julia Louis-Dreyfus in character as Selina Meyer; and even coaxed a quasi-\u201cBirdman\u201d revival out of Michael Keaton. There was also a musical victory lap, featuring performances by David Byrne, Andra Day, and Bruce Springsteen, plus one final, celebrity-packed installment of the Colbert Questionert.<\/p>\n<p>By the time Thursday\u2019s finale arrived, it almost felt as though the show had already spent two weeks pulling out every stop imaginable. Which begged the question: What, exactly, was left for the finale of CBS\u2019 \u201cThe Late Show\u201d \u2014 especially one scheduled to run 17 minutes over?<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-5\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-3\"><\/div>\n<p>From Stephen to You<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"A Reciprocal Emotional Relationship - Colbert's Series Finale Begins With A Message For His Audience\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/c_SVdzTXdnE\" width=\"350\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-origwidth=\"350\" data-origheight=\"235\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-6\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-4\"><\/div>\n<p>Colbert began the hour by addressing both the studio audience and viewers at home directly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have done over 1,800 of these shows,\u201d he began. \u201cMost nights, I come out here and talk to the audience beforehand. Tonight, I thought I\u2019d talk to the audience in here and the audience out there, at home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Colbert went on to describe \u201cThe Late Show\u201d as \u201cthe joy machine\u201d \u2014 joking that bandleader Louis Cato \u201cstole it from us, and we are currently in litigation right now\u201d \u2014 before turning sincere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you choose to do [the job] with joy,\u201d he said, \u201cit doesn\u2019t hurt as much when your fingers get caught in the gears.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He proceeded to praise the staffers who helped produce the show over the last 11 years, adding: \u201cI cannot adequately explain to you what the people who work here have done for each other, and how much we mean to each other,\u201d likening everyone he employed as \u201cthe great Achilles whom we knew.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Colbert then revisited the mission statement from the debut of \u201cThe Colbert Report\u201d on October 17, 2005: \u201cAnyone can read the news to you. I promise to feel the news at you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI realized pretty soon in this job that our job over here was different,\u201d he continued. \u201cWe were here to feel the news with you \u2014 and I don\u2019t know about you, but I sure have felt it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Colbert continued: \u201cWe love doing the show for you, but what we really, really love is doing the show with you.\u201d He then closed the address with the same words he said to the studio audience before each taping: \u201cHave a good show, thanks for being here, and let\u2019s do it, y\u2019all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A Roast by Hosts Past and Present<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Legends Of Late Night Introduce The Series Finale of &quot;The Late Show&quot;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EIrBEcHagUw\" width=\"350\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-origwidth=\"350\" data-origheight=\"235\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>That was followed by a sprawling tribute to the history of late night and the iconic theater that has been home to \u201cThe Late Show\u201d since its 1993 premiere. Led by its namesake Ed Sullivan, the montage cycled through an eclectic lineup of past and present hosts \u2014 in order: Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, John Oliver, Jimmy Fallon, Samantha Bee, Arsenio Hall, Johnny Carson, Chelsea Handler, Andy Cohen, David Letterman, Craig Ferguson, Dick Cavett, Trevor Noah, Jay Leno, Joan Rivers, Robin Thede, Conan O\u2019Brien, Jack Benny, Steve Allen, and Jack Paar.<\/p>\n<p>The montage quickly devolved into an escalating torrent of insults aimed at Colbert: \u201cI\u2019m not surprised, because frankly, Stephen Colbert shot a guy once. He\u2019s a mean guy, he looks mean, doesn\u2019t he? He\u2019s getting fatter by the episode. He\u2019s got a tiny little, genetically altered wiener. He got caught m*****bating in a subway tunnel. I would rather watch \u2018The Late Show Starring Kanye West and Voldemort.\u2019 He looks like a short butcher peeping over two pounds of liver\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Whatever that means.<\/p>\n<p>A Celebrity-Filled Monologue That Didn\u2019t Feel Forced at All!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"There's Nothing Special About Stephen Colbert's Final Monologue At &quot;The Late Show&quot;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/76Gopgo-4PY\" width=\"350\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-origwidth=\"350\" data-origheight=\"235\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWelcome, one and all, to \u2018The Late Show,\u2019\u201d Colbert began. \u201cI\u2019m your host, Stephen Colbert \u2014 and if you\u2019re just tuning in for \u2018The Late Show,\u2019 you missed a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Colbert then launched into a Donald Trump-free monologue \u2014 though there\u2019s no telling how many political jokes were sacrificed to the parade of famous friends interrupting from the studio audience. First came Bryan Cranston, who stormed out of the Ed Sullivan Theater after learning he would not, in fact, be Colbert\u2019s final guest. Then Paul Rudd arrived bearing a ceremonial retirement gift: six \u2014 nay, five \u2014 bananas. (Rudd got hungry.) Like Cranston, he assumed he\u2019d been tapped as Colbert\u2019s last-ever guest, as did Colbert\u2019s former Second City castmate Tim Meadows.<\/p>\n<p>Suffice it to say, none of them took the rejection particularly well.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile\u2026 Colbert Costs CBS Some Money<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/meanwhile-colbert-costs-cbs-some-money-1779430501.jpg\" alt=\"Ryan Reynolds and Tig Notaro\" \/><br \/>\nAfter the first commercial break came the final installment of Colbert\u2019s long-running desk piece, \u201cMeanwhile\u2026,\u201d during which Louis Cato and the Big Joy Machine might\u2019ve cost CBS a small fortune by sneaking in a few bars from the Charlie Brown classic \u201cLinus and Lucy.\u201d (Oops! Oh well!)<\/p>\n<p>Soon after, the segment was interrupted by another famous friend, Tig Notaro, who claimed she simply enjoys attending historic events, citing the Obama inauguration and [checks notes] the moon landing. Before Colbert could fact-check her, however, the camera cut to fellow audience member Ryan Reynolds, who said he came to pay tribute to \u201cone of the world\u2019s greatest entertainers.\u201d Not Colbert, as it turned out, but Big Joy Machine keyboardist Corey Bernhardt, to whom Reynolds ceremonially passed the bananas.<\/p>\n<p>The Pope Canceled, So Paul McCartney Filled In<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/the-pope-canceled-so-paul-mccartney-filled-in-1779430502.jpg\" alt=\"Paul McCartney and Stephen Colbert\" \/><br \/>\nColbert has made no secret of the fact that he wanted Pope Leo XIV as his final guest. But when His Holiness refused to leave his dressing room \u2014 he was definitely there \u2014 out walked Sir Paul McCartney, returning to the Ed Sullivan Theater one last time to present Colbert with an autographed portrait commemorating The Beatles\u2019 legendary U.S. television debut on \u201cThe Ed Sullivan Show\u201d on February 9, 1964.<\/p>\n<p>McCartney went on to describe what it was like backstage before that performance, recalling that the band had to \u201cgo a few floors down to get makeup\u2026. The girls put makeup on us, and it was bright orange,\u201d prompting Colbert to quip, \u201cThat\u2019s very popular in certain circles these days.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That marked the night\u2019s only real reference to President Donald Trump. Well, almost.\u00a0Colbert then asked McCartney about his first impression of America, which elicited the following answer:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a boy from Liverpool, America was where all the music we loved came from. All the rock and roll, the blues, and the whole thing, even going back to Fred Astaire. It was all from America. So that\u2019s what we thought. America was just the land of the free, the greatest democracy. That was what it was. Still is\u2026 hopefully.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The End of Late Night As We Know It?<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/the-end-of-late-night-as-we-know-it-1779430502.jpg\" alt=\"Neil deGrasse Tyson and Stephen Colbert\" \/><br \/>\nThroughout the hour, reality itself seemed to be malfunctioning. At one point, Colbert apologized to McCartney and wandered backstage to investigate, only to discover a giant interdimensional wormhole \u2014 along with good friend Neil deGrasse Tyson, conveniently on hand to explain why it had opened with less than 15 minutes remaining in Colbert\u2019s final show.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s gradually swallowing up all matter and antimatter around it,\u201d Tyson explained. \u201cYou see, the fabric of the universe is underpinned by an immutable set of physical laws. Two contradictory realities cannot coexist without rupturing the space-time continuum. For instance, if a show is number one in late night and it also gets canceled.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey canceled \u2018Gutfeld!\u2019?!?\u201d Colbert exclaimed.<\/p>\n<p>Alas, they had canceled him.<\/p>\n<p>Your cancellation has created a rift in the comedy-variety talk continuum,\u201d Tyson continued, \u201cand if it grows, all of late-night television could be destroyed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Your Moment of Zen<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/your-moment-of-zen-1779430503.jpg\" alt=\"Jon Stewart\" \/><br \/>\nBefore Tyson had a chance to correct Colbert about anything, the \u201cLate Show\u201d host pushed the famed astrophysicist into the wormhole, leaving him in desperate need of another wise mentor figure. But the best the universe could deliver was Jon Stewart, there to read his longtime pal a statement on behalf of their corporate overlords: \u201cParamount strongly believes in covering both sides of any black hole that is swallowing everything we know and love, and the coverage must also include the positive aspects of the insatiable emptiness.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stewart ultimately deduced that the hole was a metaphor \u2014 but also, a literal hole, which also went and consumed Andy Cohen \u2014 and that Colbert had but two choices: He could either walk into the hole kicking and screaming, or do what he\u2019s done for the past 30 years whenever confronted with darkness \u2014 stare it down and laugh. Stewart then departed to get his \u201c72 hours of beauty sleep\u201d ahead of Monday\u2019s episode of \u201cThe Daily Show.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Strike Force Five Returns<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/strike-force-five-returns-1779430504.jpg\" alt=\"Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, John Oliver\" \/><br \/>\nAfterward, Colbert\u2019s fellow Strike Force Five members \u2014 Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, John Oliver, and \u201cHandsome Jimmy\u201d Fallon \u2014 appeared to tell Colbert how much he\u2019d be missed\u2026 and how Americans would soon be deprived of one middle-aged white man making jokes about the news. (\u201cThe news\u2026 why? What\u2019s going on?\u201d Fallon deadpanned, leaning into his reputation as late night\u2019s least political host.)<\/p>\n<p>Colbert wondered why his fellow hosts weren\u2019t also being consumed by their own black holes, prompting Kimmel to note that one opened at his show last year, but disappeared \u201cafter about three days.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt some point, this may come for all of our shows,\u201d Oliver added. \u201cBut Stephen, what\u2019s important to remember is that tonight, it is going to eat you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Colbert insisted on finishing the last 12 minutes of his show the way he wanted to \u2014 teeing Oliver up for a joke about Colbert\u2019s \u201cLord of the Rings\u201d obsession, and a cameo by Elijah Wood! \u2014 but the \u201cLast Week Tonight\u201d host was not ultimately wrong.\u00a0When Colbert returned to the stage to continue performing for his audience, everything inside the Ed Sullivan Theater was swallowed by the black hole, sending the show to commercial and seemingly ending this elaborate pretape. But it did not.<\/p>\n<p>Hello, Goodbye<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/hello-goodbye-1779430504.jpg\" alt=\"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Louis Cato and The Great Big Joy Machine with musical guests Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, and Jon Batiste\" \/><br \/>\nWhen the show returned from break, Colbert had been transported to another dimension, where he joined Elvis Costello, Louis Cato, and former \u201cLate Show\u201d bandleader Jon Batiste for an acoustic rendition of Costello\u2019s 1982 song \u201cJump Up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Viewers were then transported back to the Ed Sullivan Theater, where McCartney led a full-band performance of \u201cHello, Goodbye.\u201d Eventually, Colbert\u2019s entire crew joined them on stage.<\/p>\n<p>A Classic TV Homage<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tvline.com\/img\/gallery\/stephen-colbert-the-late-show-finale-recap-surprise-guests-highlights\/a-classic-tv-homage-1779430505.jpg\" alt=\"Stephen Colbert's dog Benny\" \/><br \/>\nThen came time to bring the house lights down. Colbert headed backstage with McCartney, who was given the honor of shutting off the marquee outside the Ed Sullivan Theater.<\/p>\n<p>Then, in an homage to \u201cSt. Elsewhere,\u201d the entire theater was subsumed by a snow globe sitting in the middle of Midtown Manhattan. Colbert\u2019s dog Benny wandered into frame and sniffed at the globe before Colbert\u2019s voice called out from off-screen: \u201cCome on, Benny. It\u2019s time to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Colbert brought the entire \u201cLate Show\u201d franchise to a close.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Stephen Colbert\u2019s Late Show Finale Packed In Paul McCartney, Endless Surprise Guests, A Black Hole\u2026 And A Classic TV Homage How does one put a bow on&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26157,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26156","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26156","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26156"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26156\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26158,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26156\/revisions\/26158"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/26157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26156"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26156"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26156"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}