Colbert's Late Show Wins Emmy After CBS Cancellation — SkimNews
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- Stephen Colbert declared "free speech is alive and well" backstage after "The Late Show" won Outstanding Variety Series at Monday's Emmy Awards, for a final season that ended in May following CBS's cancellation announcement.
- "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" beat "The Daily Show," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", "Last Week Tonight With John Oliver" and "Saturday Night Live" for the top variety prize, on top of five craft Emmys (Writing, Directing, Technical Direction, Lighting Design, and Picture Editing) it had already swept during the first weekend of the awards.
- Colbert cited specific late-night hosts by name — "Jimmy and Jimmy and John and John and Seth" — as evidence the format is healthy, adding "I think I hope it goes on for a long time."
- Colbert dodged a direct question about whether Donald Trump was behind CBS's cancellation with a physical gag ("That's a beautiful dress... I'm deaf in that ear") and told reporters he'd "never heard of" Bari Weiss when asked about her.
- Colbert credited the win to his crew — writers, director, technical director, camera, lighting, and digital team — noting the reunion was the first time many of them had seen each other in four months since the show went off the air.
Why it matters: Colbert's five-Emmy craft sweep over the two weekends underscores that the Television Academy rated "The Late Show's" final season as the best in the format — a pointed counter-narrative to CBS's reasoning for canceling it. His refusal on camera to credit or blame Trump for the cancellation, while still naming the climate of speech concerns, leaves the cancellation's political subtext entirely unspoken on the night's biggest variety-stage moment.
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