Stephen Colbert bid a poignant farewell to The Late Show on Thursday, blending heartfelt tributes with sharp critiques of CBS and its parent company, Paramount. The final episode featured celebrity cameos, a running gag about a black hole, and a soulful musical finale with Paul McCartney.
Celebrity Tributes and a Final Guest
Numerous celebrities, including Bryan Cranston, Paul Rudd, and Tim Meadows, appeared to pay tribute to Colbert. Meadows jokingly exclaimed, "Screw you, Colbert! You know what! You got what you deserve!" when learning he wasn't the final guest. Colbert teased that Pope Leo XIV, his "white whale," was backstage but humorously bailed due to missing Chicago hot dogs in his rider.
The honor of being Colbert's final guest went to Beatles legend Paul McCartney, who recalled the band's U.S. television debut at the Ed Sullivan Theater in 1964. "Looking back on it now, what I'm pleased with, we're live and we sound good," McCartney said. "We were a little bit nervous, you know, but we're young kids and we're sort of full of ourselves."
Black Hole Satire and Digs at Paramount
Colbert treated much of the final episode like a typical show, but technical glitches—mysterious noises and flickering lights—led to the appearance of a black hole backstage. There, he confronted his future alongside former Daily Show colleague Jon Stewart, who read a satirical statement from Paramount. "Paramount strongly believes in covering both sides of any black hole swallowing everything we know and love," Stewart said. "The coverage must also include the positive aspects of the insatiable emptiness."
The show took multiple jabs at CBS and Paramount, which canceled the program in mid-2025 after Colbert criticized the company's settlement with President Donald Trump. While CBS claimed the cancellation was "purely a financial decision," the show mocked that explanation.
Strike Force Five Reunion
Colbert was joined by fellow late-night hosts John Oliver, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel, and Jimmy Fallon—members of "Strike Force Five"—near the black hole. Kimmel referenced his own show's cancellation by ABC after comments about Republicans. "I think I get it now. It looks like the end. And I wish it wasn't, but that's not for me to decide," Colbert said, quoting Gandalf: "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."
Musical Finale
Visual effects showed Colbert, his team, and the audience being absorbed into the black hole before a commercial break. After returning, Colbert joined McCartney for a soulful rendition of The Beatles' "Hello, Goodbye," singing with his team and audience. The episode ended with Colbert and McCartney turning off the lights in The Late Show building.
