After The Late Show was cancelled by CBS, the show’s longtime host Stephen Colbert has landed another late-night gig, albeit a fictional one, on the very same network.
Colbert, 61, has been confirmed for a guest appearance for the forthcoming third season of crime comedy show Elsbeth, which follows an unconventional attorney investigating murders in New York.
Variety reports that Colbert will be playing the host of the fictional late-night talk show Way Late with Scotty Bristol. No further details of how Colbert’s character will play into the narrative have been revealed, but the episode has reportedly already been filmed.
Colbert’s appearance on the show is said to have been in the works for some time and was apparently orchestrated by his new co-star, Wendell Pierce, who appeared on The Late Show in February.
During his interview with Pierce, Colbert claimed that he had asked to play a corpse on Elsbeth, to which the actor said: “I can make that happen. I know a guy who knows a guy. We can get you on.”
This exchange reportedly occurred just as Elsbeth’s third season was commissioned by CBS.
Deadline adds that Colbert’s role was written specifically for him, and while it could have been recast following The Late Show’s cancellation, it was agreed that the TV host should still play the role.
Elsbeth, which is fronted by Carrie Preston as Elsbeth Tascioni, is a spin-off of the hit legal dramas The Good Wife and The Good Fight, where the character was first featured. Other notable stars from the show’s first two seasons include Nathan Lane, Keegan-Michael Key, Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is due to end in May 2026, a move that the network claims was motivated by a “financial decision”.
However, there has since been speculation that the cancellation was announced to appease Donald Trump, as Paramount, which owns CBS, relied on the presidentially controlled Federal Communications Commission to approve its $8bn sale to Skydance.
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Colbert has long been a vocal critic of Trump. His most recent spat with the president began when Colbert claimed that Paramount’s decision to pay a $16m settlement to Trump over another CBS show, 60 Minutes, amounted to a “big fat bribe”.
Very soon after Colbert’s “bribe” comment, Paramount announced the cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which will come off the air in May next year.
Trump revelled in the firing of one of his loudest detractors, posting on his Truth Social platform: “I absolutely love that Colbert was fired.”
Colbert responded by declaring that the “gloves are off”.
