Seth Meyers Describes 'The Late Show' Ending as a 'Very Sad Week for Television in America'

Seth Meyers shared his insights regarding the conclusion of The Late Show, characterizing the moment as "a very sad week for television in America." In an interview with Deadline leading up to the Thursday night finale of Stephen Colbert's program, Meyers expressed his concerns about the implications for the television landscape.

"I'm heartbroken," Meyers stated. "It's very sad to lose a colleague, and even more disheartening to lose a time slot. It would have been one thing if Stephen were departing to make way for a younger talent. Having had the experience myself, I can attest to how thrilling these opportunities are. Thus, I truly believe it's a very sad week for television in America."

Rather than appointing a successor for Colbert, CBS has opted to cancel The Late Show altogether. The network plans to fill the show's former time slot with Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen. Colbert is transitioning to co-write the screenplay for the upcoming Lord of the Rings film, titled The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past.

"I'm also very optimistic that Stephen's next chapter will be rewarding for him and for the audience," Meyers added. "I believe he's been gradually revealing what his next step would be for quite some time, and I'm excited to see it come to fruition."

Meyers recently made a special appearance on The Late Show. He, along with Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, and John Oliver, joined Colbert last week for a reunion of Strike Force Five, a podcast initiated by the five late-night hosts during the 2023 writers strike. The group engaged in a thoughtful discussion regarding the current state of late-night television.

Colbert remarked, "You guys started this journey before I did. Each of your shows began prior to this one. And you'll be here long after I'm gone. You're like the candy shell; I'm the nougat filling, and then someone came in and just sucked it out."

Last year, Meyers acknowledged the precarious nature of hosting Late Night. In a conversation on Armchair Expert, he confessed to contemplating the possibility of his own cancellation. "I would often stress about my mental health," he shared. "But I devoted considerable thought to broadening my skill set. Certainly, financially, I could have sustained myself solely by hosting the show for the last eleven years. However, I felt a calling to cultivate a stand-up career and explore other avenues."