Stephen Colbert’s Final Late Show Episode Drew Massive Ratings 📺

The final episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert pulled in a huge 6.74 million viewers, making it the most-watched weeknight broadcast of Stephen Colbert’s entire run on the show.

And honestly, they went out in full emotional-damage mode for millennials who grew up falling asleep with late-night TV humming in the background.

The finale featured Paul McCartney as the final guest. He gifted Colbert a signed Beatles portrait before joining a closing performance of Hello, Goodbye alongside Elvis Costello, Jon Batiste, and Louis Cato.

In one final symbolic moment, McCartney shut off the power inside New York’s Ed Sullivan Theater, the same legendary venue where The Beatles famously performed in the 1960s.

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The episode mixed heartfelt moments with Colbert’s usual sarcasm, including sketches involving interdimensional wormholes, appearances from other late-night hosts, and a few subtle shots aimed at CBS.

The network announced the cancellation last year, officially blaming financial reasons. The timing raised eyebrows though, especially after Colbert publicly criticized Paramount over its settlement involving Donald Trump.

The finale officially closes the chapter on The Late Show, ending a 33-year run that started with David Letterman before Colbert took over in 2015.

Basically, late-night TV just lost one of its last big “everyone watches tomorrow morning clips at work” shows. 📺☕