A top Paramount executive has broken the company’s silence on the controversial cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, citing economic pressures as the primary reason for ending the long-running program.
Following the finalization of Skydance’s acquisition of Paramount on August 7, Paramount Global TV Media Chairman George Cheeks addressed the network’s late-night programming decisions at a press conference.
“The challenge in late night is that the advertising marketplace is in significant secular decline,” Cheeks stated. “We are huge fans of Colbert, we love the show; unfortunately, the economics made it a challenge for us to keep going.” His comments reaffirm the network’s initial position that the move was purely financial and not a response to Colbert’s criticism of Paramount’s settlement with Donald Trump.
Cheeks also revealed that the network’s decision to withdraw from the time slot was solidified by host Taylor Tomlinson’s departure from After Midnight. He explained that the network “couldn’t stay in that daypart” following Tomlinson’s choice not to return.
Notably, CBS opted to end the After Midnight franchise entirely rather than find a replacement for Tomlinson, despite having previously renewed the show for a third season.
During her final broadcast, Tomlinson expressed her disappointment with the show’s conclusion. “It was my dream to finish off this season and hand it off to a new host,” she told her audience. Tomlinson clarified that her departure was a personal choice, as the daily television schedule was “not sustainable” with her career as a touring stand-up comedian.
After Midnight, a reboot of the Comedy Central panel show @midnight (2013-2017), premiered in 2024 in the timeslot previously held by The Late Late Show with James Corden. The slot is now occupied by Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen.
