Stephen Colbert opened up about the emotional moment he had to inform his staff that The Late Show was canceled by CBS, revealing his nervousness and vulnerability as he struggled to deliver the news, which left him shaken and the audience confused, but with his wife’s support, he faced the challenge head-on.

In a shocking and deeply personal revelation, Stephen Colbert opened up about the nerve-wracking moment he had to break the news to his staff that The Late Show was being canceled by CBS.

In an emotional recount, Colbert admitted that the experience was far from the poised, polished persona many expect from late-night hosts.

“It wasn’t just a normal day at the office,” Colbert said in a recent interview.

“I had to do it — I knew I had to tell them.

But I didn’t know how.

” According to Colbert, the moment was made even more challenging by his own hesitations.

Initially, he planned to wait until after the summer break to deliver the crushing news, but his wife, Evelyn McGee-Colbert, wasn’t having it.

“She said, ‘Are you going to tell the staff?’ I said, ‘I don’t know.

Maybe I’ll tell them after the summer break,’” Colbert recalled.

“She said, ‘You are going to tell them tomorrow.’ I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ She said, ‘I am coming to work with you tomorrow because I think you are telling your staff.’”

Faced with her unwavering support, Colbert reluctantly agreed.

The next day, he walked into the Late Show set with his wife by his side, already dreading the task ahead.

“I get up in the elevator.

I had sweat through my shirt,” Colbert admitted, recalling the intensity of the moment.

“I didn’t want to know anything my staff didn’t know.

I was so nervous about doing it.”

As he entered the studio, Colbert realized just how difficult it would be to deliver such personal news in front of an audience.

With the cameras rolling and the prompter in place, he found himself uncharacteristically flustered.

“There was nothing on the prompter.

I messed up twice,” Colbert confessed, laughing at himself.

“I had to restart, and the audience thought it was a bit.

They started cheering, ‘You can do it.

Come on, Steve.

You can do it!’”

Despite the encouraging crowd, Colbert was visibly shaken.

As he made it to the crucial sentence—the one where he would explain that the show was officially canceled—he faltered.

“I always messed up on the sentence that told them what was happening,” Colbert said.

“I got to the sentence that told them what was happening, and they didn’t laugh.

They didn’t laugh. That’s it. That’s how I did it.”

Colbert’s raw vulnerability in this moment underscores just how emotional the cancellation was for him and his team.

As a beloved host of The Late Show for years, Colbert had built a deep connection with his staff, many of whom had worked alongside him since the show’s inception.

“It wasn’t just a professional loss,” Colbert admitted.

“It felt personal.

These people were like family.”

The staff’s reaction to the news was understandably mixed—many were shocked, others deeply saddened by the sudden change.

Some took to social media, expressing their support for Colbert, while others shared their disbelief at CBS’s decision to pull the plug on one of the network’s most successful late-night programs.

“I didn’t want to make a joke out of it,” Colbert explained.

“But at that moment, there was nothing else I could do.

I had to get through it, and the audience helped me do that.

Their cheers kept me from falling apart.”

CBS has yet to release a full explanation behind the decision to cancel The Late Show, but insiders suggest that it may be part of a larger strategy to shift the network’s focus toward a new era of programming.

Whether that shift will pay off remains to be seen, but Colbert’s emotional farewell on air has undoubtedly left a mark on his audience.

Despite the tough moment, Colbert’s career isn’t slowing down.

Fans have speculated that he may be preparing for a new venture outside the constraints of network television, possibly even embracing new platforms for his brand of humor.

For now, though, he’s taking things one step at a time—surrounded by his team, his wife, and a loyal fanbase who continue to support him through one of the most challenging moments of his career.

The cancellation of The Late Show marks the end of an era for late-night television, but as Colbert has shown, it’s never easy to say goodbye.

“I always said I would go out on my terms,” he said, smiling wistfully.

“But this? This wasn’t how I imagined it.”

While Colbert is now gearing up for the next chapter, one thing is clear: his legacy in late-night TV will never be forgotten.

The emotional toll of that day and the uncertainty surrounding CBS’s next steps are only adding more fuel to the fire of speculation about what Colbert will do next.

One thing’s for sure — audiences are eagerly awaiting his next move.