Stephen Colbert and David Letterman turned the final week of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert into a full-scale CBS roast, complete with a fake firing joke and actual furniture being hurled off a roof. Letterman returned to the stage he once owned, and the two wasted no time making the network regret the cancellation. Two hosts, one roof, and a CBS logo that never stood a chance.

David Letterman wasted no time setting the tone for The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. Once on stage, he told the audience that a CBS employee had approached him backstage that very night and fired him, framing it as a joke for comic effect. The absurdity was the point: CBS disposing of a man who had not been on their payroll since 2015. Letterman delivered it with full theatrical bewilderment.

"Well, you know what happened backstage? I am standing backstage, a guy comes over, he says he is from CBS, and he fires me," Letterman said on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.

He then added, "What is going on over there?!" emphasizing that CBS, apparently, had not gotten the memo that he had already left the building years ago.

From verbal jabs, the duo escalated to something far more physical. Letterman noted that the studio furniture, including couches and Colbert's desk chair, belonged to CBS and Skydance. Stagehands cleared the stage while both hosts relocated to audience seats. The two then headed to the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater, where couches, the desk chair, watermelons, and a wedding cake were hurled onto a giant CBS logo below. Letterman called it the wanton destruction of CBS property.

While the furniture was still airborne, Colbert had already mapped out what comes next for his life beyond the Ed Sullivan Theater.

What is next for Stephen Colbert after The Late Show

Final episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert airs on May 21, 2026, closing a run that began in 2015. After the show, Stephen Colbert is shifting his focus toward a major new creative venture. He is currently co-writing a new Lord of the Rings film, tentatively titled The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past, with his son Peter McGee alongside Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Fran Walsh.

CBS said The Late Show With Stephen Colbert was cancelled because of annual losses nearing 40 million dollars. The explanation quickly faced scepticism from industry peers, including Jimmy Kimmel. The cancellation coincided with the Donald Trump-aligned Ellison family completing their CBS-Paramount takeover, fuelling speculation about political motivations. Colbert and David Letterman made their feelings known, one joke and one airborne couch at a time.

What are your thoughts on David Letterman and Stephen Colbert's fiery farewell to The Late Show? Let us know in the comments.

Written by

Shraddha Priyadarshi

Edited by

Aliza Siddiqui