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Less than a month after CBS shockingly canceled The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, the Emmy race for Best Variety Talk Series has been completely upended.

Based on initial Gold Derby predictions following the nominations in July, The Daily Show was favored to win its 12th Emmy in the category, extending its record. But in the weeks following The Late Show's cancellation, there's a new frontrunner in the race for Best Variety Talk Series.

Drumroll, please!

Variety Talk SeriesContenderOdds 1.Late Show with Stephen Colbert65.9% 2.The Daily Show30.6% 3.Jimmy Kimmel Live3.5%

According to the Gold Derby tracking data, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert now has a 65 percent chance of winning the Emmy, compared to a 31 percent chance for The Daily Show, and a 4 percent chance for Jimmy Kimmel Live. That's a stark difference from the last time we checked in on this race, on July 29, when The Late Show...

“A talent agent is sitting in his office and in walks a family — a father, a mother and two kids. The father says to the agent, ‘Have I got an act for you!’”

So begins one of the most notoriously dirty jokes in the history of comedy. The specifics can vary, but the basic idea is always the same: The family walks in and offers up their act. The agent asks what the act is and one of them, usually the father, goes on to explain their routine, which involves the most shocking and depraved sex acts possible between members of the family, including but not limited to: urination, defecation, vomiting and bestiality.

The depraved part of the joke can last just a couple of minutes or upwards of an hour, and the contents change depending upon the imagination and endurance of the joke-teller. The ending, however, is always the...

Comedy fans, including David Letterman, got a rare look at the unreleased documentary Dave Chappelle: Live in Real Life at the 23rd annual Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival on Aug. 8. The screening of the film, which chronicled the comic’s beloved cornfield comedy shows during the pandemic, was followed by an even rarer audience talkback. Initially titled Dave Chappelle: This Time This Place, the doc originally premiered at a packed Radio City Music Hall in 2021 during the first live Tribeca Festival since the Covid-19 lockdown. Fallout over trans jokes from his controversial Netflix special The Closer reportedly derailed distribution. In response, Chappelle did a special tour featuring both the doc and a comedy show. The documentary remains unavailable to the general public.

Chapelle’s appearance was part of his philanthropic effort to raise money for his D.C. high school, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, the latest...

It’s maybe a little funny that the man who made the call to cancel Colbert and who will now decide the fate of Jon Stewart’s future at Comedy Central and The Daily Show is Mr. Cheeks. That’s right, a man named George Cheeks is the Chairman of TV Media for New Paramount. In the newsletter Status, media reporter Oliver Darcy detailed a lunch he had with Cheeks to discuss the potential changes coming to the network following the Paramount-Skydance merger.

While the most important details include what will happen to Stewart and Tds, Darcy sets the scene with some truly terrifying details first. Mr. Cheeks eats his hamburger with a “fork and knife.” Pick it up with your hands, Mr. Cheeks! Come on!

But now, on to the important details. The Paramount and Skydance merger became official on August 7th, meaning that New Paramount is likely...

The future of The Daily Show and Jon Stewart’s return just got murkier thanks to a puzzling statement from Comedy Central’s new boss. The Daily Show launched in 1996 and became iconic under Stewart’s leadership from 1999 to 2015. Known for political satire, sharp humor, and cultural impact, it shaped late-night TV and inspired shows like Last Week Tonight and The Colbert Report.

With The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ending in 2026, fans are speculating if The Daily Show, which saw Jon Stewart return in 2024, could be next. As Comedy Central faces leadership changes and CBS shifts its late-night strategy, questions grow about the future of political satire, network comedy, and long-running franchises in the ever-changing world of network TV.

LateNighter featured a report stating that when Oliver Darcy from Status caught up with George Cheeks and asked him about the status of Stewart’s contract renewal, the executive now...

Jay Leno should have known what he was getting into when he told the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation that today’s comedy has become “just really political.” Comedians who clearly state their positions are alienating half their audiences, he complained. “Why not try to get the whole? I like to bring people into the big picture. I don’t understand why you would alienate one particular group — or just don’t do it at all... Just do what’s funny.”

The blowback was immediate. John Oliver heard the interview and decided, “I’m going to take a hard pass on taking comedic advice from Jay Leno.” And his old Daily Show partner, Jon Stewart, had no patience for Leno’s idea of avoiding “jokes about things you actually think.”

“The whole thing,” Stewart said, “is fucking ridiculous.”

Others, including Cracked, wasted no time reminding Leno that he’d made plenty of alienating,...

Chris McCarthy, who was co-ceo of Paramount Global and president of Showtime/MTV Entertainment and is leaving after more than 20 years, says his “greatest achievement” at the company was his work around mental health.

McCarthy revealed last month that he wouldn’t be remaining with the company after Skydance takes control beginning Thursday.

“Our greatest achievement goes beyond entertainment,” he wrote in a memo to staff today, seen by Deadline.

He said that the company has “literally helped change how an entire industry tells stories about mental health and in doing so will help generations of audiences to come.”

“When the alarming rise of mental health issues became a crisis, we didn’t just sit back, we leaned in. We spearheaded an industry-wide Mental Health Coalition and, together, we’ve driven a nearly 40% increase in mental health storylines which help to normalize mental health and showcase characters coping with issues,...

Chris McCarthy touted Jon Stewart’s return to “The Daily Show” along with milestones for “Drag Race” and “South Park” as highlights as his time at Paramount in his exit memo.

The Paramount Global co-ceo, who will exit the company following the completion of its merger with Skydance on Thursday, applauded Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios for crafting cultural-defining series that “create” trends, rather than following them, specifically shouting out Jon Stewart’s return and the enduring legacy of “Drag Race” and “South Park” — shows that have both been targeted by the political right — as moments of pride.

“We brought Jon Stewart back to speak truth to power, continued to elevate and celebrate ‘Drag Race’ globally while others try to silence it, and we grew and extended our partnership with Matt and Trey, ensuring that the ‘South Park’ boys can continue to point out the inanities and insanities of life for years to come,...

Chris McCarthy saluted his team and cited advocacy work done on behalf of mental health as among the highlights of his 22-year tenure at MTV, Viacom and Paramount Global in his exit memo.

McCarthy, who had served as co-ceo of Paramount Global for the past 15 months in addition to running the cable division, is leaving the company as it prepares for the closing of its merger with Skydance Media on Aug. 7.

“Our greatest achievement goes beyond entertainment,” McCarthy wrote. “When the alarming rise of mental health issues became a crisis, we didn’t just sit back, we leaned in. We spearheaded an industry-wide Mental Health Coalition and, together, we’ve driven a nearly 40% increase in mental health storylines which help to normalize mental health and showcase characters coping with issues, getting help and supporting others. Simultaneously, we’ve worked hard to diminish the negative stigma related to mental health and...

Jordan Klepper, one of the hosts of The Daily Show, is such a fan of late-night that when he started on the Comedy Central series he found himself in an awkward situation.

Making his debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Klepper revealed that on his first day at The Daily Show in 2014, he called host Jon Stewart “Dad.”

Working on a piece about Crimea, which had just been invaded by Russia, Klepper said: “I realize I’m in way over my head, and we have to figure out a way to make this work. Luckily, the people on The Daily Show are some of the smartest folks; they crafted a bit around me being overwhelmed, being put in a place for their first time, like Crimea and their first day on their job. I remember brainstorming with Jon … and nervously throwing out ideas. In my nervousness, I called Jon ‘Dad,...

The first day at any new job can be overwhelming, but the first day at “The Daily Show” was truly terrifying for host Jordan Klepper. But his nerves did lead to a funny moment making it into his first segment.

Stopping by “The Tonight Show” on Tuesday, Klepper recalled his first day on the Comedy Central show, explaining that he only auditioned for the show four days earlier. He was still full of confidence and energy though — at least until he learned he was needed for a segment about Russia invading Crimea.

“Immediately I’m like, ‘What is Crimea? Is it a thing? Is it a place? Where is it?'” Klepper recalled. “I go into the office with Jon Stewart, who knows where Crimea is. He’s written editorials based on what’s happening in Crimea, he has opinions about it. And I realize I’m in way over my head,...

Last Week Tonighthost John Oliver is getting candid about the state of late-night talk shows. His comments follow the controversial axing of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Oliver was rather candid about the state of the late-night genre. "It's constantly evolving. What's happened to The Late Show is incredibly sad for comedy and, obviously, for the staff in that building," he said. "It really resonated with me when Stephen said he was hoping to hand this show over to someone else."

"You hope that the franchise lives on partly because there are generations of teenagers watching those shows and deciding, 'Maybe I'd like to be a comedy writer,' and then maybe writing on that show," Oliver continued. "So, just as there are Colbert writers that watched Letterman, there will be future writers that watched Colbert, and you want that to continue. I’m...

John Oliver has been a staple of late-night television for 20 years. Times have changed since he debuted on The Daily Show, and now as host of Last Week Tonight, but Oliver remains a crucial part of the genre. However, there is one thing that would make Oliver walk away from it all.

Late-night TV doesn't appear to be on stable footing these days. Shows like After Midnight and The Late Late Show have been cancelled, and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is next to get the ax. Networks claim financial losses are behind the decision, while others argue that politics has played too big a role in what happens behind the cameras.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver debuted on HBO in 2014. Since then, the premium television network has been in the hands of multiple different corporate owners. Despite the leadership changes, Oliver hasn't had to deal with the...

Will George Cheeks kill Kenny?

Now that Skydance has officially acquired Paramount, the shuffling of the executive deck chairs has begun. One curious decision: All of the shows previously under Paramount’s “scripted production” are moving to the new Paramount TV Studios, according to Deadline — all except for one.

South Park will be part of a different portfolio headed by Paramount Global co-ceo George Cheeks, who also has the new title of Chair of TV Media. Does the name “George Cheeks” sound familiar? Most network suits stay anonymously in the background, but Cheeks made recent headlines as the guy who issued the pink slip to Stephen Colbert.

Cheeks now has a lot on his plate, heading up CBS, its news and sports divisions and a number of Paramount’s old cable properties, including MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and BET. Connect the dots and — you got it — Cheeks is now the...

Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios’ content president and chief creative officer Nina L. Diaz will exit Paramount following the closing of its $8 billion merger with Skydance later this week.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built — and even more excited for what’s ahead, for all of us,” Diaz wrote in an email to staff on Monday. “Change, as we know, is part of this business — and part of growth. I’m stepping forward with deep gratitude and high spirits, knowing that the impact we’ve made here will keep echoing.”

Diaz marks the latest Paramount executive set to depart, following her boss and Paramount co-ceo Chris McCarthy and Paramount Streaming president and CEO Tom Ryan.

Diaz began her career with MTV Networks in 1996 as a producer/director and would rise through the ranks to vice president of MTV News and Documentaries by 2003. After leaving the company in 2007, she...

The dust hasn’t even settled on the Skydance–Paramount merger, and South Park is already feeling the effects. Under the restructured company, departing Paramount Global co-ceo Chris McCarthy’s scripted production operations are being folded into the newly formed Paramount TV Studios, overseen by Dana Goldberg and expected to be run by Skydance TV President Matt Thunell.

But there’s one big exception: South Park will no longer be in that group’s portfolio. Instead, it will fall under fellow Paramount Global co-ceo George Cheeks, now serving as Chair of TV Media in the post-merger setup. That means Cheeks will be in charge of both South Park’s network home, Comedy Central, and its production arm, South Park Digital Studios — a joint venture between Paramount and creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s Park County.

The shift will put the network and the production under the same top exec,...

At the new Paramount following the completion of the Skydance acquisition, the scripted production operations overseen by departing Paramount Global co-ceo Chris McCarthy are being folded into the newly formed Paramount TV Studios, overseen by Dana Goldberg, Co-Chair of Paramount Pictures and Chair of Paramount Television, and expected to be run by Skydance TV President Matt Thunell. With one exception, South Park, which is produced by South Park Digital Studios, a joint venture co-owned by Paramount and series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s Park County. It will be part of the portfolio of fellow Paramount Global co-ceo George Cheeks, who has been named Chair of TV Media at post-merger Paramount.

In his role as president of Showtime/MTV Entertainment, McCarthy led both MTV Entertainment Studios, which produces series for streaming, and Paramount’s side of the South Park studio. In one of his last acts at Paramount, he...

Exclusive: Veteran MTV Networks executive Nina L. Diaz, who most recently served as President of Content and Chief Creative Officer for Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios, will be leaving when Skydance’s pending acquisition of Paramount Global is completed Aug. 7.

She just made the announcement in an internal memo, a copy of which was obtained by Deadline.

“Change, as we know, is part of this business — and part of growth. I’m stepping forward with deep gratitude and high spirits, knowing that the impact we’ve made here will keep echoing,” Diaz wrote Monday in the email, in which she included several highlights from her time at the company, from The Osbournes and Love & Hip-Hop to Landman, Jon Stewart’s return to The Daily Show and Yellowjackets’ resurgence.

Diaz is departing alongside her longtime boss Chris McCarthy, co-ceo of Paramount Global and President of Showtime/MTV Entertainment, whose pending exit was revealed last week.

Charlamagne tha God isn’t the first person to suggest Daily Show host Jon Stewart should run for president. There’s a change.org petition out there imploring him to run in 2028, one of several out there dating back to at least 2016. But the radio personality might be the first to float that trial balloon on Fox News, as he did Saturday during an interview with the president’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump.

The Breakfast Club co-host got off some doozies during the interview, telling Lara Trump that “I think traditional conservatives are going to take the Republican Party back. I think there’s a political coup going on right now in the Republican Party that people aren’t paying attention to. I think this Epstein thing is going to be a way for traditional conservatives to take their party back, I really do.”

Then Charlamagne suggested a radical candidate for the next election cycle.

The Late Showhost Stephen Colbert is officially headed for primetime in the next season of Elsbeth.

Per Deadline, Colbert recently wrapped filming on his premiere episode of Elsbeth, in which he appears as a guest star. Although Colbert won't be portraying himself in the episode, he will be taking on the role of a late-night talk show host. This comes shortly after the announcement that The Late Show, which Colbert has hosted since 2015, will be airing its final episode next year.

A spinoff of The Good Wife and The Good Fight, the Robert and Michelle King-created series Elsbeth stars Carrie Preston in a reprisal of her role as attorney Elsbeth Tascioni. Elsbeth largely relies on a "howcatchem" format, with almost every single episode of the series focusing on a new murder case to be cracked. Alongside Preston, Elsbeth stars Carra Patterson as NYPD officer Kaya Blanke and Wendell Pierce...

There might be some tension at Mar-a-lago next time Lara Trump comes to visit.

Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law’s interview Saturday on her Fox News show with Charlamagne Tha God has really gotten under Potus’ thin and artificially tanned skin – and The Breakfast Club co-host is lovin’ it.

Also linking to an old clip from the Daily Show and Lara Trump’s My View, Charlamagne himself reposted the unhinged post that the elder Trump put up early today calling the Maga critic and member of the loyal opposition a “a Low Iq individual,” a “racist sleazebag,” and everything else under the sun.

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A post shared by Lenard (@cthagod)

Taking yet another swipe at Joe Biden and now non-California gubernatorial candidate Kamala Harris plus the CAA-repped God’s moniker, Trump unloaded by declaring the well-informed Charlamagne “has no idea what words are coming out of...

“I’m voting for Stephen,” reads the billboard.

Surprisingly, this is Jimmy Kimmel’s FYC message of support his late-night peer Stephen Colbert, whose Late Show was unceremoniously canceled by CBS days after he was nominated for an Emmy in the Outstanding Talk Series category.

The tagline currently adorns one billboard in West Hollywood above a liquor store, but it’s clear what the message is.

Kimmel, whose own Jimmy Kimmel Live! show was also nominated in the category alongside The Daily Show, has a history of amusing Emmy campaigns. Earlier this year, Kimmel, as he was seeking the nomination used the tagline: What If I Told You I Was Dying? Other taglines have included: Consider The Considerate, For Your Hmmmm, Isn’t It Embarrasing That We Take Out Ads Begging For Consideration?, If I Lose I’ll Just It Was Rigged, and Without Awards, Life Is Meaningless.

Colbert is...

It’s been a few weeks since the first rumors circulated that the Skydance-Paramount merger would result in some major shake-ups. Paramount owns both CBS and Comedy Central where Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart, two of Trump’s most popular critics, helm late-night shows. Within a week of the first report about this possibility, CBS axed Colbert and the entire Late Show institution. CBS cited financial reasons; almost everyone else cited Trump and the Skydance merger.

Skydance was suspected of playing a role in the Colbert cancellation because in the lead-up to the merger, Skydance owners Larry and David Ellison had already capitulated to Trump in a few other ways: They were a reportedly motivating factor in the nightmare $16 million settlement between Trump and Paramount after Trump sued 60 Minutes, and they promised Trump up to $20 million in political advertisements in a side deal.

Stewart assessed the Colbert cancellation best:...

Nearly every legend of late night weighed in on the firing of Stephen Colbert, from John Oliver, to Jimmy Kimmel, to David Letterman (“This is pure cowardice”).

Longtime Tonight Show legend Jay Leno hasn’t commented directly, but in an interview taped just days before the Colbert decision, he repeated his tired mantra about leaving politics out of comedy. “I don’t think anybody wants to hear a lecture,” he lectured. “Why shoot for just half an audience? Why not try to get the whole? I like to bring people into the big picture. I don’t understand why you would alienate one particular group — or just don’t do it at all. I’m not saying you have to throw your support. But just do what’s funny.”

Despite a career in which Leno took plenty of political shots, he continues to tell comics to give their opinions a rest.

The Daily Show host Jon Stewart has explained why he thinks Greg Gutfeld is having such success on Fox News, while also saying conservatives are shooting themselves in the foot by targeting left-leaning media. On the most recent episode of The Weekly Show podcast, Stewart answered various fan questions, including one about whether President Donald Trump could target TV shows “with a conservative bias.” “Right now? No!” Stewart said, per Mediaite, before turning his attention to how the current head of the FCC, Brendan Carr, has been “s*** posting” about Stephen Colbert. Last month, Colbert told his viewers that CBS had canceled The Late Show, which will air its final episode in May 2026. CBS cited financial reasons; however, others speculated that the decision was made due to Colbert’s criticism of Paramount’s recent settlement with President Trump. This comes amid Paramount’s proposed merger with Skydance, which requires regulatory approval from the Trump administration.

Kamala Harris appeared on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” Thursday night just hours after it was announced she is going to release “107 Days,” a memoir about the 2024 presidential election.

In a preview clip from the show, Colbert asked her if the reason she said she wouldn’t run for governor of California is because she is going to run for a different office, and Harris responded, “No. I don’t want to go back in the system. I think it’s broken.”

“I always believed that as fragile as our democracy is our systems would be strong enough to defend our most fundamental principles, and I think right now that they’re not as strong as they need to be,” she said. “I want to travel the country, I want to listen to people, I want to talk with people and I don’t want it to be transactional...

Much has been said lately about the state of late-night TV and whether it can sustain viewership. But it appears that the White House is doing its part to keep late-night ratings up. The Trump administration's response to The Daily Show proves just how much space the genre takes up in the White House.

Earlier this week, Shrinking star Jessica Williams returned to The Daily Show to share her conspiracy theory involving President Donald Trump and Jefferey Epstein. Williams claimed Trump is attacking prominent Black people in an effort to distract from questions about his relationship with Epstein. The Daily Show correspondent joked that she may be next, considering she's an Emmy-nominated actress.

But rather than let Williams' commentary pass as just another clip of late-night TV mocking the president, the White House chose to bring more attention to The Daily Show by issuing a response.

“Given that I...

Paramount Global chair and controlling shareholder Shari Redstone has just thanked investors and her company’s co-CEOs. She recalled her father, the late Sumner Redstone, who grew Par into a media powerhouse, as the company prepared to merge with Skydance next week. And, as the Aug. 7 closing date for the merger approaches, said she believes the David Ellison company will be a good steward of the assets.

“I believe I can take it on faith that many on this call understand the enormous importance of this business to my family and to me. Beginning nearly 40 years ago, my father, Sumner Redstone, built Viacom and CBS by bringing together a group of the best assets in media, news and entertainment. While people often debated whether content or distribution ruled the day, my father’s steadfast belief was that content was king. Even against the backdrop of enormous change, that core business...

Paramount Global reported its last set of financials under Redstone family ownership with a massive jump in theatrical revenue (up 84%) from Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning last quarter. Released May 23, it’s grossed nearly $600 million worldwide.

Crime drama MobLand on Paramount+ and CBS Sports were other bright spots in the three months that beat forecasts on some but not all metrics. In a shoutout to Jon Stewart amid angst among the late-night crowd, the company noted that The Daily Show “ranked as the #1 Late Night program on Mondays across all TV.”

TV media revenue fell 6% and affiliate revenue fell 7%, reflecting an ongoing erosion in linear.

Total company revenue nosed up 1% to $6.85 billion as direct-to-consumer growth outpaced linear and generated $114 million in free cash flow. Dtc profits saw a $131 million year-over-year swing to $157 million. The company swung to a $57 million profit from a $5.4 billion loss in the year-earlier quarter, when...

A day after announcing that she wouldn’t be running for California Governor, Kamala Harris is heading back to late-night.

The former Vice President will appear on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert tonight (Thursday July 31). It marks her first interview since the 2024 Presidential election.

Harris’ last visit to the Ed Sullivan Theater was on Tuesday October 8, 2024, just ahead of the election, which she lost to President Donald Trump.

The former Veep also announced earlier today that she was writing a book – 107 Days – about her campaign for the presidency.

It’s interesting timing for Colbert, whose show was unceremoniously canceled by CBS earlier this month. CBS said it was purely for financial reasons, but there has also been the specter of Trump, whose lawsuit The Late Show’s parent company Paramount Global settled in order to get its deal with Skydance over the line.

Last time she was at The Late Show...

South Park appears to have doubled down on its criticism of President Donald Trump in the trailer for season 27’s second episode. Episode 2, releasing on Wednesday, August 6, continues an already controversial season 27 of South Park. Co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone recently signed a new $1.5 billion deal with Paramount and promptly took the media conglomerate to task after its cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Now, Comedy Central has released the trailer for the second episode and it depicts Trump continuing his relationship with Satan. It also includes a reference to conservative commentator Charlie Kirk and the current Ice raids occurring across the country. Watch the trailer below:

Episode Two Of Season 27 Doubles Down On New Depiction Of Trump Trey Parker & Matt Stone Stepping Firmly On The Gas

Never a show to shy away from controversy, season 27 of South Park started with a bang, skewering the current political climate of the United States,...

Samantha Bee has said she was “shocked, [but] not surprised” CBS canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, noting that the long-running late-night program was “definitely hemorrhaging money.” Bee, who previously worked alongside Stephen Colbert on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, shared her thoughts on the latest episode of the Breaking Bread with Tom Papa podcast. When asked her opinion on CBS’ decision to axe the show, Bee said she believes it was both a “financial decision” and to “curry favor with the president.” “I think both things are true,” she said, per Variety. “It definitely was hemorrhaging money. These legacy shows are hemorrhaging money with no real end to that… in sight, people are just not tuning in.” CBS cited financial reasons for canceling The Late Show, which will air its final episode in May 2026. However, others have speculated that the decision was made due to Colbert’s criticism...

Jay Leno has denounced fellow TV hosts who have criticized CBS’s decision to axe The Late Show.

On July 17, CBS announced that Stephen Colbert’s show, well-documented to be the network’s most successful, was being canceled due to “purely” financial reasons.

The decision comes in the wake of CBS agreeing to settle a lawsuit by paying millions to President Donald Trump, seemingly to receive the FCC’s approval for a merger with the entertainment company Skydance. Trump first filed the lawsuit after CBS aired a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, which the president claimed was deceptively edited.

CBS’s choice to bow to Trump’s wishes has been criticized by many news outlets and hosts – including Jon Stewart, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, John Oliver and Seth Meyers – as a failure to uphold journalistic integrity.

Colbert blasted the decision on The Late Show, and the cancellation of the...

What a difference a week — and a shocking cancellation — makes.

When the 2025 Emmy nominations were announced on July 15, the Best Variety Talk Series race appeared to be a slam dunk for The Daily Show. However, following CBS' so-called "purely financial decision" to end The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on July 17, the forecast has become clouded.

The Late Show has a 26 percent chance of winning the Emmy, according to the Gold Derby predictions. That's a 19-point surge from the 7 percent chance the show had on the day it was canceled. Stephen Colbert's ascension is the direct result of Gold Derby's experts, editors, and users updating their picks, no doubt believing Television Academy members might want to reward The Late Show for what many see as a political decision, and provide a platform for a charged acceptance Emmy speech from Colbert.

Meanwhile, The Daily Show has seen its hopes drop significantly over that same time period.

With Just For Laughs Montreal now behind us, Jfl has announced the first round of headliners for its Toronto Festival, taking place from September 18-27.

Notable comics set to appear include Gabriel Iglesias, Maria Bamford, Al Madrigal, Big Jay Oakerson, Ron Funches, Todd Barry, Ian Fidance, Gina Yashere, and Hari Kondabolu, among others.

“We’re proud to bring a great Just For Laughs lineup to Toronto this year,” said Jfl’s President & CEO, Sylvain Parent-Bédard. “It’s a great opportunity to share our comedy spirit with audiences in the city, and we can’t wait for Toronto audiences to laugh with us once again.”

Commented Jfl’s Head of Programming and Talent, Nick Brazao, “We’re beyond excited to announce an incredible lineup of comedy programming for this year’s Just For Laughs Toronto Festival — get ready for unforgettable performances, big laughs, and the best in stand-up and more from around the world.

A familiar face returned to The Daily Show on Monday night to keep the Donald Trump-Jeffrey Epstein story going. Correspondent Jessica Williams was back on Comedy Central to tell Jon Stewart all about a new conspiracy she's uncovered.

Williams left The Daily Show as a full-time correspondent in 2016. She's made brief cameos in the years since, but has primarily been focused on her work in series such as Shrinking and the Fantastic Beasts film franchise. However, the Trump-Epstein headlines inspired Williams to come back to late-night and expose Trump's latest distraction strategy.

“Trump is trying to throw every Black person he can think [of] in front of the scandal to distract us,” Williams told Stewart. “First, he released the Martin Luther King Jr. files. Then he accused Obama of treason. And now he wants to prosecute Oprah and Beyoncé?”

Williams' theory came on the heels of President Trump...

The cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was only the beginning, according to Donald Trump. “The word is, and it’s a strong word at that, Jimmy Kimmel is Next to go in the untalented Late Night Sweepstakes and, shortly thereafter, Fallon will be gone,” he posted on Truth Social.

If the president's predictions come true, who will be left to make fun of Trump?

Everybody, according to comedians.

Wbez, the NPR station in Chicago, somehow had enough funding to make the rounds at the city’s recent iO Fest, a huge gathering of local and national comedians. The consensus among the assembled funny people was that Colbert’s cancellation would mean more Trump jokes, not less.

Part of the reason is the gene that appears to be part of every comic’s DNA: Telling comedians they can’t say something results in an uncontrollable compulsion to say it.

In a move that shocked the world of late-night television, CBS canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Jul. 17, citing that it was a “financial decision.” In the weeks following the announcement, several other hosts in the late-night genre have spoken out against CBS’s decision, including former Late Show host David Letterman.

Seth Meyers is opening up about what the Late Show’s cancellation could mean to him and his future as a talk show host. PerThe Hollywood Reporter, Myers, who has hosted NBC’s Late Night since 2014, talked with Dax Shepard on his Armchair Expert podcast about the matter. The podcast did note, via its Instagram page, that the episode was produced before The Late Show was canceled.

During the show, Shepherd asked Meyers if he had any “fear” about his future in late-night television. “I do,” replied Meyers. “I mean, only because it is such a time we’re living in,...

Seth Meyers acknowledged that there is a lot of uncertainty about late-night TV shows following the cancellation of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. During an appearance on the podcast Armchair Expert, Meyers reflected on how the end of his own show, Late Night With Seth Meyers, would impact him.

On the podcast, which was recorded in May, host Dax Shepard asked if Meyers had any fear that Late Night might “end tomorrow.”

“I do,” Meyers admitted. “I mean, only because it is such a time we’re living in,...

Jon Stewart recapped Donald Trump’s trip to Scotland this week and the many ways the president attempted to deflect reporters from asking about Jeffrey Epstein.

On the latest episode of The Daily Show, Stewart noted that Trump did what anyone who was innocent would do: “He fled the country.” The host added that the president jetted over to Scotland not only to close his EU trade deal, but also to “gain an ocean’s distance between himself and the Epstein scandal.”

Of course, many of the reporters in Scotland asked about the Epstein scandal,...

Donald Trump is doing just about anything to try and distract the American (and international) media from his increasingly-likely involvement with the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking ring. Jon Stewart has been tasked with breaking down just how it’s been going. And let’s be honest, not much is working, but Trump isn’t a take-no-for-an-answer kind of guy. Obviously. So, instead of accepting defeat or just shutting up, he’s been talking to reporters and posting on Truth Social.

He’s gone after Coca-Cola and tariffs and re-named NFL teams. But none of that has reached the level of insolence or racism that Trump typically operates on. To do that, the sitting president of the United States decided to go after civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (by releasing classified FBI documents about King) and President Obama.

Considering Trump can’t do anything in half measures, he’s...

There’s never gonna be a moment in this lifetime or the next where I say that Donald Trump should be able to move past this Epstein Files debacle. It should be how he spends the rest of his life, and we should make sure it's a highlighted section in his legacy that he was heavily involved with prolific pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Rightfully, Jon Stewart spent another Monday night monologue on The Daily Show covering the absolutely bonkers ways Trump has been trying to spin the increasingly overwhelming evidence against him. Saying you never “had the privilege” to visit Epstein’s island? Saying pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell is something you’re “allowed to do”? It’s not innocent, as the kids say.

But do you know who else’s name has popped up in the Epstein Files news? The world’s most irritating vegan and the 42nd president, Bill Clinton. According...

On this week’s episode of “The Daily Show,” Jon Stewart broke down Donald Trump’s trip to Scotland and his defense against the media’s endless tirade of Jeffrey Epstein questions.

Stewart opened his monologue by joking that Trump needed to take a trip over to Scotland not only to close his EU trade deal, but also to put “an ocean’s distance between himself and the Epstein scandal.”

The late-night pundit then immediately cut to a clip of a Scottish reporter asking Trump, “Mr. President, was part of the rush to get this deal done to knock the Jeffrey Epstein story out?”

“He’s all like, ‘How did you even hear about… I thought you guys just got “Baywatch” like three months ago?'” Stewart said. “‘Doesn’t anybody here have a question about this trade deal sinking both of our economies with tariffs?'”

Stewart then went over Trump’s rebuttals,...

Fresh off of her repeat Emmy nomination for her role in Apple TV+’s Shrinking, Jessica Williams popped by her old haunt at The Daily Show to discuss how president Donald Trump is scapegoating famous Black people to distract from the mounting pressure over the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

“Trump is trying to throw every Black person he can think [of] in front of the scandal to distract us,” the actress and comedian began. “First, he released the Martin Luther King Jr. files. Then he accused Obama of treason. And now he wants to prosecute Oprah and Beyoncé?”

Williams — who departed The Daily Show as a regular in 2016, but has made guest appearances as recently as last year — continued, saying that the GOP leader is targeting “all of our greatest Black people.”

“Who’s next? Michael Jordan? Michael B. Jordan? Michael C. Jordan?” she questioned.

The Booksmart alumna added,...

Jay Leno, who previously helmed The Tonight Show, criticized late-night hosts whose political jokes only appeal to “half their audience.”

During a recent interview with the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, Leno said it’s important to use humor that gets the “whole audience.” He added that hosts risk losing viewers if they are seen “cozying up to one side or the other.”

“To me, I like to think that people come to a comedy show to kind of get away from things, you know, the pressures of life, whatever it might be,...

It was only a matter of time until Jay Leno had something to say — although, whether he said anything actually in response to the dust up at “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” is a little less clear. In an interview posted last week by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, taped two weeks ago, Leno took the current slate of late night hosts to task.

“I got hate letters [when hosting ‘The Tonight Show’] saying, ‘You and your Republican friends,’ and another saying, ‘I hope you and your Democratic buddies are happy’ — over the same joke,” Leno related (via THR). “That’s how you get a whole audience. Now you have to be content with half the audience, because you have to give your opinion.”

Leno continued to explain how, in his day, friends didn’t talk about their political positions — even those in the comedic realm. “Rodney Dangerfield and I were friends.

It was recently announced that The Late Show has been canceled, set to end its run with Stephen Colbert as host in 2026. This marks the end of an era for late-night television, sparking speculation about which other talk shows could be next to get squashed.

Jay Leno, who hosted The Tonight Show before current host Jimmy Fallon, recently spoke out about the state of late-night TV. He discussed the situation during an interview with Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute president and CEO, David Trulio. Leno said that these shows have gotten too political with their humor in recent years, pushing away many potential viewers who don't want to hear "lectures" about politicians.

“To me, I like to think that people come to a comedy show to kind of get away from things, you know, the pressures of life, whatever it might be,” Leno explained. “I love political humor, don’t get me wrong,...

Late-night television is struggling. We see it with Stephen Colbert’s Late Show, where CBS’ latest financial disclosures lead me to believe that someone on staff is setting money on fire every day as a pre-taping ritual. Whether Colbert is actually losing $40 million a year is really besides the point, in general late night is suffering a viewership crisis. The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart admitted as much earlier this week, calling the format the equivalent of a “Blockbuster kiosk inside of a Tower Records.”

But ironically, The Daily Show might be the first late-night program that actually hacked something that feels miraculous in a time when TikTok and short-form video content is frying Gen Z brain cells like electric mosquito traps in Florida. In fact, The Daily Show brought in new viewers this week in the 18-49 demographic.

How? They brought in a host under 40 years old who has a large internet following.

Jay Leno believes late-night TV comedians have become too politicized — and that they risk losing half the viewing audience by “cozying up to one side or the other.”

“To me, I like to think that people come to a comedy show to kind of get away from things, you know, the pressures of life, whatever it might be,” Leno said in a recent interview with David Trulio, president and CEO of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute. “Now you have to be content with half the audience because you have to give your opinion.”

Leno didn’t name names. But the current roster of late-night hosts — Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, John Oliver, Seth Meyers and more — has routinely mocked President Trump and the Maga movement. To be fair, they have also opportunistically lampooned Democrats.

Leno’s impression is that late-night TV these days skews toward specific political viewpoints.

Joining many other TV hosts bashing CBS, Jon Stewart has shown his support for fellow TV host Stephen Colbert, whose show was just cancelled, allegedly due to financial strains on CBS.

CBS announced its cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on July 17.

In his Daily Show episode, Stewart ripped into the network, saying, “The fact that CBS didn’t try to save their No. 1 rated late-night franchise that’s been on the air for over three decades is part of what’s making everybody wonder: Was this ‘purely financial’?

“Or maybe it’s the path of least resistance for your $8 billion merger to kill a show that you know rankled a fragile and vengeful president who’s so insecure that he’s suffering terribly from a case of chronic p— insufficiency.”

In his show the week before after the announcement had been made, Stewart said, “Look, I understand the corporate fear.