Jimmy Kimmel urges fans not to 'ever watch' CBS after Colbert finale

Jimmy Kimmel used his May 20 monologue to salute Stephen Colbert’s final episode of The Late Show, announced he will not air a new show opposite it and jokingly urged viewers to watch CBS one last time and then stop, while recalling the 2025 cancellation of the program and the financial and political factors behind it.

Jimmy Kimmel is imploring viewers to exit CBS with Stephen Colbert.

Kimmel devoted the start of his May 20 monologue on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" to paying tribute to Colbert, whose "The Late Show" airs on CBS at the same time Kimmel's show airs on ABC. But Kimmel noted that "out of respect for our colleague and friend," he will not air a new episode on May 21 opposite Colbert's "Late Show" series finale. CBS canceled the long-running late-night show in 2025.

"I think you know how I feel about the fact that they are being pushed out," Kimmel said. "I hope the people who did the pushing feel ashamed of themselves tonight, although I know they probably won't. But that being said, I think it is most important to congratulate Stephen and the team at 'The Late Show' for all the great work over the last 11 years, and all the great work he will continue to do in other venues, I have no doubt."

Kimmel noted that even though he is technically Colbert's competition on another network, "we never felt like we were competing against him," and everyone at "The Late Show" has been "very gracious" to him over the years. "It has been a pleasure to work alongside you," he said.

Finally, Kimmel recommended viewers tune into the "Late Show" finale, but then stop watching CBS after that.

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"I will be watching tomorrow night. I hope that those of you who watch our show will also tune into CBS, for the last time. Don't ever watch it again, but watch tomorrow night," he quipped.

Transitioning into talking about the day's news, Kimmel said he would then talk about the person who "forced them off the air," President Donald Trump.

When "The Late Show" was canceled in 2025, parent company Paramount Global said it was "purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night," though critics suggested politics may have played a part. Colbert is a vocal critic of Trump, and at the time of the cancellation, Paramount was going through a merger with Skydance that required Trump administration approval.

Kimmel appeared on "The Late Show" on May 11 alongside fellow late-night hosts Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver. The comedians all bemoaned the "Late Show" cancellation, with Kimmel sharing his "outrage" and saying it's a "tragedy." Kimmel also jokingly wondered why people weren't canceling Paramount+ subscriptions in protest.

"When I got knocked off the air for a few days, people canceled Disney+," Kimmel said, referring to his September suspension over comments about the killing of Charlie Kirk. "Why aren't you people canceling Paramount+? Because you didn't have it in the first place?"

Like Kimmel, Fallon is also airing a rerun of "The Tonight Show" on May 21 out of respect for Colbert's finale.