"CBS and Skydance Can Go to Hell"... Legendary U.S. Talk Show Host's Scathing Critique

Legendary Late-Night Host David Letterman Blasts CBS Over "The Late Show" Cancellation
"It Feels Like an Adult Bookstore Has Replaced My Old Home"

Legendary American talk show host David Letterman has voiced strong opposition to the cancellation of "The Late Show," currently hosted by his successor Stephen Colbert.

David Letterman appeared on Stephen Colbert's 'The Late Show' last year. YouTube

According to Yonhap News, in an interview with The New York Times (NYT) on May 5 (local time), Letterman criticized CBS's decision to cancel "The Late Show" due to financial issues, saying, "They are lying," and adding, "CBS and Skydance can go to hell."

Letterman hosted NBC’s late-night talk show "Late Night with David Letterman" starting in 1982, and later moved to CBS, where he took over "The Late Show with David Letterman" from 1993 to 2015. He is credited with defining an era of American late-night talk shows, known for his cynical yet sharp satire.

After Letterman’s retirement, Colbert took over as host, but CBS has decided the show will end on the 21st of this month. Amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated public displeasure with Colbert’s political satire, some point out that the network's editorial stance has shifted following last year's merger between Paramount Global, which owns CBS, and Skydance, led by David Ellison, who has close ties to President Trump.

Letterman stated, "When I heard the news of the cancellation, my first concern was for Colbert," adding, "My regret over 'The Late Show' disappearing came much later." He said, "Television might not be making as much money as it used to, but what about the humanity of the people who loved Colbert, those who enjoyed a break at 11:30 p.m.?" He went on to say, "It felt like driving through your old neighborhood only to find that an adult bookstore had replaced the place you once lived."

U.S. President Donald Trump. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

Colbert himself has raised questions about the reasons behind the cancellation. In an NYT interview on April 28, he did not deny CBS's financial reasoning, but remarked, "I know broadcasting has become difficult, but I received notice of cancellation in less than two years. Clearly, something has changed."

He also directly criticized CBS’s parent company Paramount for settling a lawsuit with President Trump for 16 million dollars, referring to it on air as "a massive bribe." CBS announced the show's cancellation just three days later. However, CBS maintains that "it was purely a financial decision."

Meanwhile, in the interview, Letterman also commented on the future of late-night talk shows. He said, "They may not enjoy the same level of popularity as before, but late-night talk shows will not disappear entirely," adding, "The act of one person talking to another—that’s the greatest show of all."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.