{"id":157203,"date":"2025-08-19T01:49:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T01:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/157203\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T01:49:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T01:49:12","slug":"conan-obrien-late-night-tv-will-disappear-but-stephen-colbert-isnt-going-anywhere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/157203\/","title":{"rendered":"Conan O\u2019Brien: Late-night TV will \u2018disappear,\u2019 but Stephen Colbert isn\u2019t going anywhere"},"content":{"rendered":"

Conan O\u2019Brien<\/a> knows a thing or five about late-night talk shows. <\/p>\n

So he spoke with plenty of authority when he was honored as an inductee at the 27th Television Academy Hall of Fame<\/a> ceremony Saturday (Aug. 16) in Los Angeles. <\/p>\n

O\u2019Brien was a leading voice of late-night TV for 28 years.<\/p>\n

He hosted NBC\u2019s \u201cLate Night with Conan O\u2019Brien<\/a>\u201d from 1993 to 2009 and \u201cThe Tonight Show with Conan O\u2019Brien<\/a>\u201d briefly from 2009 to 2010 followed by \u201cConan<\/a>\u201d on TBS from 2010 to 2021.<\/p>\n

The future of late night? <\/p>\n

Admittedly not bright, O\u2019Brien said at the hall of fame ceremony. <\/p>\n

\u201cYes, late-night television, as we have known it since around 1950, is going to disappear,\u201d he said. \u201cBut those voices are not going anywhere. People like Stephen Colbert<\/a> are too talented and too essential to go away. It\u2019s not gonna happen.\u201d <\/p>\n

Last month, Colbert<\/a>, a Montclair resident, announced on CBS\u2019 \u201cThe Late Show\u201d that not only was his time with the show coming to an end<\/a> in 2026, but the network had also decided to completely axe \u201cThe Late Show.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, he\u2019s not going anywhere,\u201d said O\u2019Brien, 62, continuing his hall of fame remarks (see clip below). \u201cStephen is going to evolve and shine brighter than ever in a new format that he controls completely. So technology can do whatever they want. It can make television a pill. It can make television shows a high-protein, chewable, vanilla-flavored capsule with added fiber. It still won\u2019t matter. If the stories are good, if the performances are honest and inspired, if the people making it are brave and have goodwill, then somewhere, two weird siblings huddled in their crowded living room just off Route 9 outside Boston are going to be moved.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"StephenStephen Colbert’s last episode of “The Late Show” is set to air in 2026.Scott Kowalchyk\/CBS<\/p>\n

That last Boston-area bit was a tribute to O\u2019Brien\u2019s own upbringing in Brookline, Massachusetts. <\/p>\n

The former late-night host has himself proven that changing technology and trends can\u2019t keep good comedy and storytelling down. <\/p>\n

Since 2018, O\u2019Brien has hosted the successful podcast \u201cConan O\u2019Brien Needs a Friend<\/a>,\u201d which SiriusXM bought in a $150 million deal in 2022 that included his podcast network and all of his Team Coco output. <\/p>\n

O\u2019Brien parlayed a segment on the podcast called \u201cConan O\u2019Brien Needs a Fan\u201d into the Emmy-winning HBO Max series \u201cConan O\u2019Brien Must Go<\/a>.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s a travel show in the spirit of his previous travel series as a late-night host (like \u201cConan Without Borders\u201d), one that sees him visit fans he\u2019s interviewed on his podcast in their home countries. <\/p>\n

Last month, CBS executives said the decision to end Colbert\u2019s \u201cLate Show\u201d was \u201cpurely a financial decision<\/a> against a challenging backdrop in late night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not related in any way to the show\u2019s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOther matters\u201d meant the then-impending merger of Paramount<\/a>, parent company of CBS, with Skydance<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So it follows that many link Colbert\u2019s dismissal next year to his on-air criticism<\/a> of Paramount\u2019s concessions to President Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Just before the decision to bring the long \u201cLate Show\u201d run to an end was announced, Colbert addressed Paramount\u2019s $16 million settlement with Trump<\/a>. The president had sued the company for $10 billion<\/a> over claims about the editing of a \u201c60 Minutes<\/a>\u201d interview with Vice President Kamala Harris.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs someone who has always been a proud employee of this network, I am offended and I don\u2019t know if anything will ever repair my trust in this company,\u201d Colbert, 61, said during his monologue<\/a>. \u201cBut just takin\u2019 a stab at it, I\u2019d say $16 million would help.\u201d<\/p>\n

He continued to skewer Paramount in the segment. <\/p>\n

\"SCProtesters outside “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in July after Paramount paid a settlement to President Donald Trump and CBS announced the cancellation of the late-night show.Charly Triballeau | AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe this kind of complicated financial settlement with a sitting government official has a technical name in legal circles,\u201d Colbert said. \u201cIt\u2019s \u2018big fat bribe<\/a>.\u2019 Because this all comes as Paramount\u2019s owners are trying to get the Trump administration to approve the sale of our network to a new owner, Skydance … And some of the TV typers out there are blogging<\/a> that once Skydance gets CBS, the new owner\u2019s desire to please Trump<\/a> could \u2018put pressure on late-night host and frequent Trump critic Stephen Colbert.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The merger between Skydance and Paramount became a done deal earlier this month after the Federal Communications Commission approved the merger<\/a> in late July. <\/p>\n

Colbert has hosted \u201cThe Late Show\u201d since 2015. His last episode will air in May 2026.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Brien, who hosted<\/a> the 2025 Oscars<\/a>, was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor<\/a> earlier this year. He appears in the upcoming A24 movie \u201cIf I Had Legs I\u2019d Kick You<\/a>\u201d opposite Rose Byrne, which will be in theaters Oct. 10.<\/p>\n

Thank you for reading. Please consider supporting NJ.com<\/a> with a subscription.<\/p>\n

Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com<\/a> and followed at @AmyKup<\/a> on Twitter\/X, @amykup.bsky.social<\/a> on Bluesky and @kupamy<\/a> on Instagram<\/a> and Threads<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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