CBS shot Stephen Colbert in the back as he walked out the door after his final show.
The network’s late-night stalwart was given the boot amid Trumpy billionaire Larry Ellison’s takeover via his media titan, Skydance, last summer.
As the final episode of The Late Show wrapped up on Thursday after 33 years on air, CBS programmers leaped in to advertise its replacement in the commercial break.
“Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen starting May 22nd at 11.35 p.m.,” the May 21 advert said.
Colbert took over The Late Show from David Letterman in 2015, but his exit 11 years later has raised concerns about government involvement in independent media.
It comes as the Ellisons try to expand their empire.
Paramount Skydance was sued in early May by a pair of press freedom groups alleging the firm’s bosses may have tried to curry favor with the White House and buoy its bid to take over Warner Bros. Discovery.
Freedom of the Press Foundation and Reporters Without Borders demanded to see internal company documents in a letter to Paramount Chief Legal Officer Makan Delrahim, the Los Angeles Times reports.
They claimed media reports around the matter “create credible concern that Paramount leadership has offered, solicited, or effectuated a corrupt exchange,” which they say could “constitute a breach of fiduciary duties” and make the firm vulnerable to a “range of potential civil and criminal penalties.”
Since knowing his days were numbered, Colbert has shown no fear in attacking the administration, scoring points at every opportunity.
On his penultimate show, the 62-year-old brought out staunch Trump hater Bruce Springsteen.
“I am here in support tonight of Stephen because you’re the first guy in America who’s lost his show because we got a president who can’t take a joke,” said the rock star, who regularly clashes with Trump.
“And, and because—because Larry and David Ellison feel they need to kiss his a‑‑ to get what they want, so these are—anyway, Stephen, these are small-minded people who got no idea what the freedoms of this beautiful country are supposed to be about. This is for you.”
His final show, however, was a less vitriolic affair and with only subtle digs at the administration, CBS, and its owners.
Instead, Colbert struck a tone of love and appreciation, saying, “I cannot adequately explain to you what the people who work here have done for each other and how much we mean to each other.”
“We were here to feel the news with you, and I don’t know about you, but I sure have felt it.”
At the end of the lovefest, which did include several veiled jabs, CBS couldn’t wait to advertize the show that will boot him off the air.
It was announced that Colbert’s show was getting canceled shortly after he suggested that his bosses at CBS were paying “a big fat bribe” to Donald Trump in settling an easily winnable lawsuit with a $16 million payout.
The merger between Paramount and Skydance required FCC approval.
The Warner Bros. Discovery deal has become a heavily politicized issue after Netflix’s deal fell apart at the 11th hour after a hostile takeover attempt from Paramount.
Netflix dropped its offer in February, after Warner said Paramount’s late bid of $111 billion was “superior.”
