With CBS and Stephen Colbert saying The Late Present will finish in 2026, late evening TV is turning 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 referred to as a “large fats bribe”—to settle President Donald Trump’s lawsuit in opposition to CBS over a 60 Minutes section.
Nevertheless, whereas that reasoning stays hypothesis, a number of different components are additionally enjoying into the demise of late evening TV.
Decline of linear
Viewership on conventional linear networks, the house of most late evening exhibits, has been declining for years whereas streaming continues to achieve new milestones. In Might, streaming formally handed the mixture of cable and broadcast for the primary time, based on Nielsen’s The Gauge knowledge. Then, in June, streamers widened the hole, with streaming accounting for 46% of viewership whereas broadcast and cable mixed for 41.9%.
Displaying the dip, in 2015, when Colbert first took over The Late Present, The Tonight Present topped late evening 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 Dwell, averaging a a lot decrease 2.5 million viewers per evening.
Talking on the situation of anonymity, one advert purchaser informed ADWEEK that market advert provide losses from The Late Present can be minimal attributable to extended ranking erosion.
And whereas scores and advert {dollars} have gone down, prices have gone up.
Decline of advert {dollars}
Based on The Measure, citing knowledge from iSpot and Tubular Labs, Colbert’s Late Present has had essentially the most advert attain of any broadcast program within the late evening 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.
Nevertheless, CBS referred to as The Late Present cancellation a “monetary resolution,” and there may be 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 Dwell! 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, to date this 12 months, 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 all the way down to Kimmel having extra commercials general, with The Late Present that includes extra community promos.
The exhibits additionally come at a steep value. Hosts like Colbert and Fallon reportedly make greater than $10 million per 12 months, and Puck reported at present that The Late Present was shedding $40 million per 12 months. In its personal cost-cutting transfer in 2024, NBCUniversal lowered The Tonight Present from 5 days per week to 4.
Notably, the cancellation of The Late Present basically takes CBS out of the expensive late evening 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. Nevertheless, that present goes away too, with Tomlinson strolling away after two seasons.
Evolving panorama
Late evening 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.
Nevertheless, viewing habits didn’t get the memo.
In the present day, 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, convey viewers a continuing stream of reports tales, sketches, memes, and superstar information—the type of content material viewers used to assemble across the TV to get from a late evening host.
In fact, late evening exhibits aren’t stagnant. They’ve discovered to blow by their linear scores to get pleasure from tens of millions extra views through next-day social viewing. The Measure notes that broadcast late evening exhibits earn greater than 100 million minutes watched per thirty days amongst U.S. YouTube viewers, and The Wrap reported that The Tonight Present not too long ago reached 55% development in social media views 12 months over 12 months.
However in adapting to a social media world, late evening exhibits are now 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 might “open the floodgates” for networks like ABC and NBC to make related strikes.
Nevertheless, there’s nonetheless extra to say about the way forward for discuss exhibits. As an example, podcasts and social-forward discuss exhibits like Scorching Ones proceed to thrive, with the latter even reportedly being in talks with Netflix to convey the present to the streamer.
If evolution is on the desk as an alternative of extinction, it will not be too late for late evening.
