cajunaggie08 said:

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AgNav93 said:

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RikkiTikkaTagem said:

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ABATTBQ11 said:

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$30 million an episode seems about right

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Cost like a million an episode to produce I believe.

Matt and Trey are living the American dream

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It's oddly strange how successful you can be when you don't use your pedestal to **** on half the country and are truly funny.

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They just **** on the entire country instead

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Yep. People respect that.

I think the Tonight Show is salvageable once the other two are gone. Fallon seemed to go left in response to those other idiots. The questions i have are 1) can he rebuild an audience or is his rep too damaged and 2) does the show need to move back to Burbank vs New York for the purpose of the pool of guests(fewer political and more entertainment driven though these days they all seem political)?

These 3 sustained careers by ****ting on Trump 5 nights per week for close to 10 years. I wouldn't even begin to equivocate Trump talking a bit of **** now to that. Fallon was the least toxic of the 3, but they'll all be gone soon regardless.

It also cracks me up that they want to play the victim now. Fundamental violation of "don't dish it if you can't take it" this Gen X kid grew up with.

Ferg said:

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I think the Tonight Show is salvageable once the other two are gone. Fallon seemed to go left in response to those other idiots. The questions i have are 1) can he rebuild an audience or is his rep too damaged and 2) does the show need to move back to Burbank vs New York for the purpose of the pool of guests(fewer political and more entertainment driven though these days they all seem political)?

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I think his rep is damaged with most former late night talk show viewers just because they don't see him as genuine. There is a reason anytime his name is brought up the first comment anywhere on social media is about his fake laugh with every guest. I'm sure he'd be a great guy to hang out with and is genuinely a funny person. Perhaps if he tuned down the over the top guest praise maybe i would give him another chance. But that would involve me making the active choice to switch over to my cable streaming app when its not my default entertainment choice because 90 percent of what is on the cable guide is crap.

Ferg said:

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I think the Tonight Show is salvageable once the other two are gone. Fallon seemed to go left in response to those other idiots. The questions i have are 1) can he rebuild an audience or is his rep too damaged and 2) does the show need to move back to Burbank vs New York for the purpose of the pool of guests(fewer political and more entertainment driven though these days they all seem political)?

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Yeah, if one of the late night shows can survive, it's The Tonight Show. I would just rather it not be with Fallon, and a move back to Burbank would be awesome. That's a great idea. NBC still has SNL as well, Sunday Night NFL Football, the NBA starting next season, the Olympics of course, all the Dick Wolf scripted dramas, etc. Again, under Comcast, they feel like the last, relatively stable network, with a variety of content, that isn't completely crumbling or primarily for old people (like CBS). If any network can still support a late night talk show, it's them.

Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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Unless he actually does something that obviously proves he is in breach of his contract behavior wise, they'd get sued for doing that. Conan went nuclear on NBC the last week of his time at The Tonight Show, and NBC just absorbed it and moved on.

TCTTS said:

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Ferg said:

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I think the Tonight Show is salvageable once the other two are gone. Fallon seemed to go left in response to those other idiots. The questions i have are 1) can he rebuild an audience or is his rep too damaged and 2) does the show need to move back to Burbank vs New York for the purpose of the pool of guests(fewer political and more entertainment driven though these days they all seem political)?

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Yeah, if one of the late night shows can survive, it's The Tonight Show. I would just rather it not be with Fallon, and a move back to Burbank would be awesome. That's a great idea. NBC still has SNL as well, Sunday Night NFL Football, the NBA starting next season, the Olympics of course, all the Dick Wolf scripted dramas, etc. Again, under Comcast, they feel like the last, relatively stable network, with a variety of content, that isn't completely crumbling or primarily for old people (like CBS). If any network can still support a late night talk show, it's them.

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Which is crazy to think about considering 10 years ago it seemed like they were on a downward trend with thursday's must see tv dying off. Granted their critically acclaimed comedies from then like Parks and Rec and the Good Place never found high ratings. I guess with NBC it helps that their parent company is an internet service provider and they are spinning off most of their cable networks to let them sink with the rest of cable whereas Paramount (Viacom) management has refused to abandon their cable channel roots.

DannyDuberstein said:

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These 3 sustained careers by ****ting on Trump 5 nights per week for close to 10 years. I wouldn't even begin to equivocate Trump talking a bit of **** now to that. Fallon was the least toxic of the 3, but they'll all be gone soon regardless.

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But you don't have a raging case of TDS. Those here that do don't deal in logic and reason like you did.

Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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In other words, he's just going to give fuel to the fire that his personal politics led to the show's financial downturn.

Salt in the wound for Colbert.

South Park getting paid by paramount!

REPORT: Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the longtime masterminds behind Comedy Central’s animated romp “South Park,” have reached a groundbreaking five-year deal with Paramount for the global streaming rights to their iconic animated series. Valued at $300 million per year, the… pic.twitter.com/LzjMgSxzGU

— Variety (@Variety) July 22, 2025

Gives me hope for our kids, for comedy, for sanity to be regained in America. Never would have thought I'd say that, but a huge % of this country simply cannot get out of their mental loops

YouBet said:

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Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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In other words, he's just going to give fuel to the fire that his personal politics led to the show's financial downturn.

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Yep. Brilliant strategy.

Cliff.Booth said:

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Perfect

TexAgBolter said:

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Salt in the wound for Colbert.

South Park getting paid by paramount!

REPORT: Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the longtime masterminds behind Comedy Central’s animated romp “South Park,” have reached a groundbreaking five-year deal with Paramount for the global streaming rights to their iconic animated series. Valued at $300 million per year, the… pic.twitter.com/LzjMgSxzGU

— Variety (@Variety) July 22, 2025

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Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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Jon Stewart supposedly just did an entire musical segment where he just yelled nothing but f-bombs over and over and over. Watching these once snarky and confident comedians turn into angry old guys has been interesting. Nothing lasts forever.

I wonder if the USAID spigot being shut off is playing a bigger part than people realize. Maybe the Late Show wasn't losing $40 million a year because they were able to funnel millions to it through various NGO's over the years but now that the money has dried up they have to start making cuts.

Gigem314 said:

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Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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Jon Stewart supposedly just did an entire musical segment where he just yelled nothing but f-bombs over and over and over. Watching these once snarky and confident comedians turn into angry old guys has been interesting. Nothing lasts forever.

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Maybe try actually watching it first before spreading nonsense/misinformation. Yes, there were f-bombs, but his commentary was spot-on, well-argued, hilarious throughout, and only "angry" in short bursts...

cajunaggie08 said:

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For all claiming politics are the reason Colbert ratings are down, the ONLY thing that beats it at that time slot is the right winged version of the same show on Fox News.

https://latenighter.com/news/ratings/late-night-tv-ratings-q2-2025/

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Ya, a politically driven show that infuses comedy on a politics channel.

That's not what Late Night viewers wanted. They wanted a comedy show that might occasionally infuse politics.

One show gives it audience what it wants, and the jokes are funny.

The other give its audience trash and then makes fart noises.

The latter was canceled. The former leads its time slot.

Prosperdick said:

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I wonder if the USAID spigot being shut off is playing a bigger part than people realize. Maybe the Late Show wasn't losing $40 million a year because they were able to funnel millions to it through various NGO's over the years but now that the money has dried up they have to start making cuts.

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what the fffffffffffffff

TCTTS said:

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Gigem314 said:

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Ferg said:

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Saw a promo for Colbert (on Newsmax maybe?), He said the gloves are off for the rest of his time at CBS, and he's going to say whatever he wants and dropped an fbomb at President Trump,

If i was his boss, it would be his last day on the job.

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Jon Stewart supposedly just did an entire musical segment where he just yelled nothing but f-bombs over and over and over. Watching these once snarky and confident comedians turn into angry old guys has been interesting. Nothing lasts forever.

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Maybe try actually watching it first before spreading nonsense/misinformation. Yes, there were f-bombs, but his commentary was spot-on, well-argued, hilarious throughout, and only "angry" in short bursts...

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JS is a better actual comedian than Colbert, but as soon as he drops the act you see it's the same angry, delusional old guy. It's amazing how he and his team can go from Sherlock Holmes level detective work digging up old clips and interviews involving Trump trying to link him to Epstein to pivoting to play dumb about the actual, obvious reason his buddy's show just got canceled. He's a gifted comedian but an absolute shill for the Dem establishment. Imagine the opening monologues during the the Obama and Biden years if he had taken the blinders off and, as he put it, sacked the **** up.

Stewart acknowledges multiple times that it was a financial decision, that he and Colbert are both relics on a dying platform, while also alluding to the fact that Colbert was no doubt an instigator, etc.

Stewart is simply saying that the timing was ALSO political.

Both things can be true.

Again, I don't like how insanely partisan The Late Show became under Colbert, and I don't find him particularly funny anymore either. He lost his way and got caught up in the whole uber-woke, uber-anti-Trump machine.

But I genuinely don't understand how, with a straight face, anyone can argue against the points Stewart makes in that video, re: Paramount (and every other company he names) capitulating to Trump.

The dying format thing is part of it, but Colbert beating his audience over the head constantly with TDS bull**** is more to blame for him and other late night guys killing off their ratings. People tune in to late night shows to hear *funny* takes about stuff happening around the country and to see celebs they care about being interviewed. Colbert chose to trauma dump about the guy who won every swing state nightly for 30 mins. Stewart knows all of this, but he has to play dumb.

You are incorrect on this.

The fact of the matter is that late night shows filled their time by stars promoting their movies. Has been from the beginning of time.

Now, they don't need to anymore. The biggest movie promoters are more seen on instagram than they are on a late night show.

It's not as much about "TDS" as it is 18-49 yos can get their info more efficiently.

Literally no one is disputing this.

Sometimes it's like y'all have a preset argument and just keep repeating it over and over again no matter what anyone says.

We all agree that Colbert, Kimmel, etc killed their ratings with "TDS bull****," that they took their Trump hate too far, etc, etc, etc.

That, and cord cutting sealed their fates.

Everyone and their dog knows this, including Stewart.

That's not what he's addressing here, though. He's arguing that the reason The Late Show was cancelled NOW - at this exact moment in time, as opposed to six months or a year or two from now, without ANY efforts whatsoever to first try and take cost-cutting measures - is partly to appease Trump so that he'll finally allow the Skydance deal to go through.

And Stewart's not wrong in that regard.

In fact, he provides example after example of corporations, law firms, etc as of late having to pay off/capitulate to/settle with Trump to try and avoid his wrath.

Which is exactly what's happening here. It is simply a fact that Trump suing CBS over the 60 Minutes nonsense is what has held up the Skydance deal for months now. Paramount finally agreed a few weeks ago to pay him off, with a $16M settlement, so that the deal can finally go through, but it apparently still wasn't enough. Fast forward to Friday, though, and here are the two big industry headlines of the day…

July 18, 2025
Skydance's David Ellison Meets With FCC Chairman Brendan Carr To Discuss Paramount Merger And Company's "Commitment to Unbiased Journalism"

July 18, 2025
"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" to end in May 2026

[Insert "Nothing to see here" meme]

Seriously... do you really think these two events weren't related? Can you actually tell me that with a straight face?

Because THAT'S what Stewart is railing against... the trend of corporation after corporation having to capitulate to the fragile ego of our litigious little ***** of a president.

Yes, the writing was on the wall for The Late Show, and late night talk shows in general. They were no doubt partly the authors of their own demise. But that still doesn't change the fact that we now exist in an environment where corporations essentially have to pay off the president, and sweeten the deal with gifts of firing his worst critics (whether explicitly asked for or not), so as to appease him. I don't care which side of the isle you're on, that's ****ed up, and Stewart has every right to call it out.

I'm talking about the obvious issue that Stewart wouldn't dare mention, that late night shows might not be on the chopping block if they had hosts with enough sense not to make spewing one-sided political vitriol their thing. Regardless of the lawsuit, late night shows could still be profitable if they controlled their spending and focused on broad appeal. Stewart quickly glossed over the absurd amount of money Colbert's show was losing.

And just to be crystal clear, I'm 100% in favor of Skydance's/Ellison's "Commitment to Unbiased Journalism." Like I and others have said numerous times, I'm more than ready for more news outlets and institutions like late night television and the like to start equally ****ting on both sides again. That, and Ellison seems legit committed to turning Paramount into a filmmaker-friendly powerhouse again, making the entire company more tech-forward, etc. I really like the guy, he's produced some incredible movies and, cards on the table, the incoming head of Paramount+, whom I've worked with, is keen on potentially bringing one of our shows the streamer, so we've been rooting hard for this deal to close for a long while now. Frankly, I'm relieved that Paramount finally did whatever it took to get the deal across the finish line. It just sucks that it involves having to butter up a president, and you can't tell me the Colbert timing was pure coincidence in that regard.

Cliff.Booth said:

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I'm talking about the obvious issue that Stewart wouldn't dare mention, that late night shows might not be on the chopping block if they had hosts with enough sense not to make spewing one-sided political vitriol their thing. Regardless of the lawsuit, late night shows could still be profitable if they controlled their spending and focused on broad appeal. Stewart quickly glossed over the absurd amount of money Colbert's show was losing.

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Just like so many here are glossing over the Trump of it all.

Everyone, on both sides, is guilty of glossing.

I guess I don't understand the "sure, the show was hemorrhaging money, sponsors. and viewers but to cancel it now was solely political" argument. For one, the reason people are objecting to timing is because there are no other real grounds to object. It's a placeholder for when people want to complain about something but don't have a real reason to support their complaint. In other words, a cop out. And in these types of claims, the right "time" never seems to come around. I mean, if the current financial situation doesn't justify it, I'm having a hard time coming up with what would. If you admit the decision is totally justified, then the right time is now.

Basically, I find it ironic that the same people who claim to want to get politics out of it are the ones injecting it. There is no credible claim that this had anything to do with Trump and the settlement. And there are copious business reasons supporting the decision. Concocting some connection to trump-through some impossible to define "timing" requirement-was the politicization of this.

The most surprising thing about this whole deal to me is that it cost $40 million a year to make a late night talk show. I thought the whole appeal to them (for networks) was that they were cheap. I bet a whole season of Hot Ones probably costs less than 10% of that, and probably has better viewership.

Cliff.Booth said:

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I'm talking about the obvious issue that Stewart wouldn't dare mention, that late night shows might not be on the chopping block if they had hosts with enough sense not to make spewing one-sided political vitriol their thing. Regardless of the lawsuit, late night shows could still be profitable if they controlled their spending and focused on broad appeal. Stewart quickly glossed over the absurd amount of money Colbert's show was losing.

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Exactly. Would the show be on the chopping block if it was making money? Of course not.

The notion that this is Trump's fault is ******ed.

AustinAg2K said:

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The most surprising thing about this whole deal to me is that it cost $40 million a year to make a late night talk show. I thought the whole appeal to them (for networks) was that they were cheap. I bet a whole season of Hot Ones probably costs less than 10% of that, and probably has better viewership.

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That's what it was losing. It cost $100 million a year.

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"I guess I don't understand the "sure, the show was hemorrhaging money, sponsors. and viewers but to cancel it now was solely political" argument."

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Again... you guys aren't reading the words being written or listening to the words being said. No one is saying "it was solely a political argument." I've said MULTIPLE times now that it wasn't, other posters here have said that it wasn't, and John Stewart has said that it wasn't. We've said it was PARTLY political. Not solely.

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"And in these types of claims, the right "time" never seems to come around. I mean, if the current financial situation doesn't justify it, I'm having a hard time coming up with what would. If you admit the decision is totally justified, then the right time is now."

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This has been explained numerous times as well. In every other instance like this, where the current financial situation didn't "justify it," cuts have first been made. The shows were given second and third chances to succeed, and often times they did. Staff was downsized, the band was cut, salaries were reduced, etc. Would those measures have worked in this instance? Who knows. Maybe not. But it's incredibly suspect that they didn't even try, especially considering the pedigree of the show.

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There is no credible claim that this had anything to do with Trump and the settlement.

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Yes, there is. You're simply and blatantly ignoring it.