Stephen Colbert Defies CBS With Standing Ovation Emmy Speech

Stephen Colbert turned the Emmys into a night no one will forget. Just two months after CBS announced it was canceling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” the 61-year-old walked away with an Emmy for Best Talk Series.

The audience inside the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles gave him a thunderous standing ovation, chanting his name.

It was a powerful reminder that even if CBS is moving on, Colbert is still one of the most loved figures in late-night TV.

On Sunday, Colbert took home the award for Best Talk Series, beating “The Daily Show” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

The win was bittersweet, as it came so soon after CBS revealed plans to end his late night show in May 2026.

In his acceptance speech, the host thanked the network despite the looming cancellation.

He told the crowd, “I want to thank CBS for giving us the privilege to be part of the late-night tradition, which I hope continues long after we are no longer doing this show.”

Colbert also gave credit to his crew and his family before closing with a heartfelt message.

He said, “I have never loved my country more desperately. God bless America. Stay strong, be brave, and if the elevator tries to bring you down, go crazy and punch a higher floor! Woo!”

The words brought the audience to its feet, cheering and clapping in one of the night’s most emotional moments.

Earlier in the night, the comedian had already won over the audience when he appeared on stage to present the award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

The entire theater rose to give him a standing ovation, even chanting, “Stephen! Stephen!”

Stephen Colbert quickly broke the tension with humor, referencing the end of his CBS show.

“Is anyone hiring? Because I’ve got 200 very qualified candidates here tonight who will be available in June,” he quipped, pointing to his cast and crew.

He then pulled out an old headshot from his younger days and joked, “I haven’t had a chance to update my headshot in a bit, but I think it still works. I think I’m in there somewhere.”

He even asked Harrison Ford to deliver it to Steven Spielberg before running into the audience to hand it to the Hollywood legend himself.

CBS announced in July 2025 that “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” would be canceled after nine seasons.

The decision came just days after Colbert blasted the network for settling a $16 million lawsuit with President Donald Trump.

Trump had accused CBS of editing an interview with Kamala Harris, but while the network denied wrongdoing, Paramount, CBS’s parent company, agreed to pay the settlement and release unedited transcripts of political interviews.

On his show, Colbert didn’t hold back, saying he was “offended” by his employer’s actions. He joked that Paramount’s settlement was a “big fat bribe” and compared it to the studio’s flop film, “Transformers: Rise of the Beast.”

He took the joke further, saying they might take the money but not the dignity, before sarcastically adding that dignity could, in fact, be bought for just $16 million since the cash was badly needed.

The timing of CBS’s cancellation led many to believe it was more than just a financial decision.

Stephen Colbert pointed to a Puck report claiming Paramount’s $8.4 billion merger with Skydance might put pressure on him to tone down political jokes, especially about Trump.

David Ellison, who runs Skydance, reportedly wanted a less political direction.

His father, Larry Ellison, is a well-known Trump supporter and had even joined the president at the White House in the past.

According to the New York Times, Larry is believed to be the financial muscle behind the massive CBS deal.

Still, CBS executives insisted that the decision was only about money and had nothing to do with ratings, the show’s content, or problems at Paramount.

They also said they would retire “The Late Show” and called Colbert “irreplaceable,” praising him as one of the best in late-night TV.

While CBS executives gave their corporate explanation, Colbert made it clear on the Emmys stage and in interviews that his main focus is his crew.

Prior to the event, he said per the Daily Mail, “The people who do the show every day teach me what it’s like to be a professional, and I would be very grateful if we could win it for them because they deserve all the recognition they can get.”

Colbert admitted that he usually got most of the attention and praise, joking that he was fine with it but wished his team received some credit too.

He also reminded viewers that nine months of shows remained before his final episode and promised that “we’re going to have a really good time doing it.”