With CBS and Stephen Colbert asserting The Late Present will finish in 2026, late night time TV is changing into extra of a graveyard shift. However the writing has been on the wall (and the web) for some time now.
The information of the Late Present cancellation comes amid on-line hypothesis over hidden political motivations. In spite of everything, the present’s finish comes as Paramount awaits FCC approval for its multibillion-dollar merger with Skydance Media and solely days after Colbert criticized Paramount for paying $16 million—what he known as a “large fats bribe”—to settle President Donald Trump’s lawsuit in opposition to CBS over a 60 Minutes phase.
Nonetheless, whereas that reasoning stays hypothesis, a number of different elements are additionally taking part in into the demise of late night time TV.
Decline of linear
Viewership on conventional linear networks, the house of most late night time reveals, has been declining for years whereas streaming continues to succeed in new milestones. In Might, streaming formally handed the mixture of cable and broadcast for the primary time, based on Nielsen’s The Gauge information. Then, in June, streamers widened the hole, with streaming accounting for 46% of viewership whereas broadcast and cable mixed for 41.9%.
Exhibiting the dip, in 2015, when Colbert first took over The Late Present, The Tonight Present topped late night time TV by averaging near 4 million viewers an evening. For the newest 2024-2025 TV season, Colbert’s Late Present got here out forward of The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Reside, averaging a a lot decrease 2.5 million viewers per night time.
Talking on the situation of anonymity, one advert purchaser informed ADWEEK that market advert provide losses from The Late Present could be minimal as a result of extended ranking erosion.
And whereas scores and advert {dollars} have gone down, prices have gone up.
Decline of advert {dollars}
In response to The Measure, citing information from iSpot and Tubular Labs, Colbert’s Late Present has had essentially the most advert attain of any broadcast program within the late night time window of 11 p.m. to 2 a.m., and throughout all dayparts. Moreover, The Late Present With Stephen Colbert ranks No. 5 for advert attain on CBS for linear.
Nonetheless, CBS known as The Late Present cancellation a “monetary choice,” and there’s proof to again that up.
Knowledge from Guideline shared with ADWEEK famous that The Late Present With Stephen Colbert, The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon, and Jimmy Kimmel Reside! mixed for round $404 million in linear TV advert income in 2018. That dropped by half to round $200 million in 2024. In the meantime, The Late Present had round $121 million in linear TV advert spend in 2018; nonetheless, it had round solely $70 million complete in 2024, a decline of 42% per the info.
The Measure famous that, up to now this yr, manufacturers have spent an estimated $32.2 million in promoting on The Late Present. In the meantime, Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon are greater, taking in over $50 million every. A few of that comes right down to Kimmel having extra commercials general, with The Late Present that includes extra community promos.
The reveals additionally come at a steep value. Hosts like Colbert and Fallon reportedly make greater than $10 million per yr, and Puck reported at present that The Late Present was dropping $40 million per yr. In its personal cost-cutting transfer in 2024, NBCUniversal diminished The Tonight Present from 5 days per week to 4.
Notably, the cancellation of The Late Present primarily takes CBS out of the expensive late night time TV sport. Following James Corden’s departure from The Late Late Present in 2023, the community changed this system with the Taylor Tomlinson-hosted After Midnight. Nonetheless, that present goes away too, with Tomlinson strolling away after two seasons.
Evolving panorama
Late night time TV’s resistance to adaptation is obvious. In spite of everything, former Tonight Present host Steve Allen first launched the discuss present desk format within the Nineteen Fifties; round 75 years later, the aesthetic largely stays unchanged.
Nonetheless, viewing habits didn’t get the memo.
At present, YouTube persistently instructions the most important portion of TV and streaming utilization, based on Nielsen, accounting for 12.8% of all streaming and TV utilization in June. As well as, different social media, together with TikTok, deliver viewers a relentless stream of reports tales, sketches, memes, and celeb information—the type of content material viewers used to assemble across the TV to get from a late night time host.
After all, late night time reveals aren’t stagnant. They’ve discovered to blow by their linear scores to take pleasure in thousands and thousands extra views by way of next-day social viewing. The Measure notes that broadcast late night time reveals earn greater than 100 million minutes watched per 30 days amongst U.S. YouTube viewers, and The Wrap reported that The Tonight Present not too long ago reached 55% progress in social media views yr over yr.
However in adapting to a social media world, late night time reveals are not appointment TV. In spite of everything, as one media purchaser informed ADWEEK, the explosion of present clips reduces the necessity to watch the entire program, and The Late Present cancellation may “open the floodgates” for networks like ABC and NBC to make related strikes.
Nonetheless, there’s nonetheless extra to say about the way forward for discuss reveals. For example, podcasts and social-forward discuss reveals like Scorching Ones proceed to thrive, with the latter even reportedly being in talks with Netflix to deliver the present to the streamer.
If evolution is on the desk as an alternative of extinction, it is probably not too late for late night time.
