The Late Show aired for the last time on Thursday, May 21, 2026, with Stephen Colbert surprising the first night lineups.
The Late Show ended its 11-year run on CBS with Stephen Colbert, who took over the show from his predecessor comedy great David Letterman in 2015.
The star-studded guest lineup appeared for Colbert to say goodbye to The Late Show.
As filming continues, the late-night comedy host hosts a galaxy of stars including Paul McCartney, Ryan Reynolds and Paul Rudd.
Colbert’s final monologue was surprisingly interrupted by several guests.
Bryan Cranston was the first surprise appearance, interrupting Colbert during his final monologue and throwing his Late Show hat down on stage in exasperation.
Then came Rudd, who cut Colbert off from the audience.
“I’m just curious for my interview to start,” said Rudd, who was shocked to learn he wasn’t Coolbert’s last guest appearance tonight.
The monologue drama did not end here.
Tim Meadows sat in front of Rudd in the audience and assumed he was also Colbert’s final guest face.
Ryan Reynolds in the audience was also surprised that he had not been able to secure the last guest spot. “Ouchie,” Reynolds said in surprise.
Tig Notaro also made a cameo in the theater crowd saying. I just like being at historical events,” noted the comedian.
The monologue, which focused on the theme of finding out who the last guest was, reached its climax when McCartney made a cameo.
McCartney sat on Colbert’s couch one last time.
The two before had a longer interview.
“I was just in the area doing some errands,” McCartney said while appearing on stage.
He continued: “I just remember the girls in the balcony,” McCartney recalled of his time when he last appeared at the Ed Sullivan Theatre.
To wrap things up, Colbert appeared in an acoustic segment where he played with Elvis Costello, Jon Batiste and Louis Cato.
After the song, McCartney took to the stage to wrap things up in great fashion, doing a performance of The Beatles’ hit-maker track Hello, Goodbye when Colbert, Batiste, Costello and Cato joined on vocals.
