Former late-night host David Letterman slammed Paramount and CBS on Friday for their treatment of Stephen Colbert, suggesting the cancellation may be linked to avoiding trouble with Trump.

CBS will end "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and retire "The Late Show" franchise in May 2026, the company announced Thursday.

David Letterman blasted his former network home CBS and the 'goons' at Skydance as he speculated that Stephen Colbert's 'Late Show' was canceled for political reasons: 'Bottom feeders.'

David Letterman delivered a fiery rant against CBS and parent company Paramount for cancelling Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show,” calling the decision “gutless” and “pure cowardice” as he labeled his successor a martyr of the network.

David Letterman unloaded on CBS and Skydance on Friday for cancelling “The Late Show,” which he launched 32 years ago, saying the network had mistreated his successor, Stephen Colbert. In an interview posted to his YouTube channel,

David Letterman is subtly showing support for his successor Stephen Colbert after CBS' shock cancellation of "The Late Show."

Speaking with his former executive producer, Barbara Gaines, in a YouTube video Friday, Letterman called the axing of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert “pure cowardice” and said he doesn’t believe the official line from CBS that the decision was purely about economics (the show has reportedly become a money-loser for the network).

"The Late Show" creator David Letterman slammed CBS' decision to cancel the long-running late-night franchise in may 2026 as "pure cowardice" on Friday.

For Stephen [Colbert], I love this, because he gets to be a martyr,” former Late Show host says of his successor

The co-creator of The Daily Show has called out CBS for canceling Stephen Colbert’s late-night program, saying it indicates the network is “afraid.” Lizz Winstead appeared on MSNBC on Sunday after authoring a scathing op-ed in Rolling Stone on Friday that cast doubt on CBS’ assertion that it canceled The Late Show purely for financial reasons.