The news of the cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show comes weeks after Paramount Global—the parent company of CBS—settled the election interference lawsuit President Trump filed against the network.

Per CNN, Trump announced his terms for dropping the lawsuit, claiming that he would do so after the network pays $16 million towards his presidential library. The media outlet reported that Paramount had a fair likelihood of beating the lawsuit in court but chose to make an out-of-court settlement.

In the wake of Paramount’s settlement, Stephen Colbert spoke about it on Monday night (July 14), suggesting that it was “a big fat bribe.” Besides the comment, Colbert is also one of the strongest critics of President Trump on television, which could be a possible reason behind his show being cancelled.

Denying all rumors about Colbert’s show cancellation being linked to Trump or his lawsuit, CBS issued a statement reading:

“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.”

CNN reports that Colbert isn’t the only one getting fired from the network. Paramount laid off nearly 3.5% of its workforce in June 2025.

Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show first premiered on CBS in September 2015, and has had a successful run of 10 seasons, being ranked the highest-rated American late-night talk show throughout the course.

Per the media outlet, the network has cited financial pressures as the reason behind the show’s cancellation, which comes as a shock given its success.