A rumor that Stephen Colbert has signed a deal with Netflix after The Late Show‘s cancellation appears to be false.
The claim circulating online states that Netflix has secured a roughly $13.5 million, seven-episode deal with Colbert, 61. Multiple outlets that examined the reporting identified the claim as unverified and labeled the story a hoax; Colbert had previously made a joking on-air reference to streaming platforms but had not announced any deal with Netflix.
The speculation comes amid Politico and Bloomberg reports that Netflix co-founder and Chairman, Reed Hastings, donated $2 million to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s redistricting efforts.
Newsweek reached out to Colbert’s representative and Netflix for comment on Monday via email outside regular working hours.
Why It Matters
Rumors about major talent deals with streaming platforms can drive public reactions including consumer boycotts and political commentary. In this instance, coverage that tied the alleged Colbert-Netflix deal to recent donations by Hastings helped amplify calls to cancel Netflix subscriptions on politically aligned accounts. Independent verification matters because unconfirmed claims can have commercial and reputational consequences for artists and companies.
What To Know
On Sunday, X user @tommyboy0690—whose bio states he’s a “lifelong Democrat” wanting “to spread the truth”—wrote: “Television legend Stephen Colbert has just signed a $13.5 million deal with Netflix for a 7-episode series.”
At the time of publication, the post racked up more than 1.1 million views, 39,000 likes and 1,700 comments.
However, a context note underneath the announcement read: “There is no confirmation that Stephen Colbert has signed a deal with Netflix.” It cited entertainment news outlet Netflix Junkie, which reported: “There has been no confirmation of such a project, nor any indication of Colbert’s next move.”
Last month, Colbert joked about his impending unemployment following The Late Show with Stephen Colbert‘s cancellation.
“Netflix, call me,” he said ahead of the show’s summer hiatus, per Variety. “I’m available in June.”
Scott Kowalchyk ©2025 CBS Broadcasting Inc.; Cheng Xin/Getty Images
In July, Colbert and CBS announced The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will conclude next year. During the July 17 episode, the comedian told the studio audience that “it’s not just the end of our show, but it’s the end of The Late Show on CBS.”
“I’m not being replaced,” he continued. “This is all just going away.”
In a CBS press release, which was sent to Newsweek at the time, the network called Colbert “irreplaceable” and said he “will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television.”
“This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount,” the statement continued. Paramount is the parent company of CBS.
Those financial reasons, though, are tied to Paramount’s proposed $8 billion merger with Skydance Media, which requires Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval under the President Donald Trump’s administration.
Days before the cancellation announcement, Colbert blasted Paramount over its $16 million settlement with Trump, stemming from a 60 Minutes interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
Last year, Trump accused the program of editing the interview with his election opponent in a “deceitful” way. The show denied that claim.
What People Are Saying
The timing of The Late Show‘s cancellation prompted politicians and fellow late-night talk show hosts to speak out.
President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on July 18: “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show.”
Senator Adam Schiff, a California Democrat who was a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert the day of the announcement, wrote via X: “Just finished taping with Stephen Colbert who announced his show was canceled. If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better.”
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, wrote on X: “CBS canceled Colbert’s show just THREE DAYS after Colbert called out CBS parent company Paramount for its $16M settlement with Trump—a deal that looks like bribery. America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons. Watch and share his message.”
Jon Stewart, whose The Daily Show is owned by Paramount, said: “I acknowledge late night TV is a struggling financial model … but when your industry is faced with changes, you don’t just call it a day. My God! When CDs stopped selling, they didn’t just go, ‘Oh well, music, it’s been a good run.’ The fact that CBS didn’t try to save their number one rated network late night franchise, that’s been on the air for over three decades, is part of what’s making everybody wonder, ‘Was this purely financial or maybe the path of least resistance for your $8 billion merger?’
Andy Cohen, who hosts Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, said on SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live in July: “Typically what would happen if a show is losing money that is also super important to the network, which that show, and the late nighttime slot has been important to CBS for the last 25 years since Letterman began it on CBS at the Ed Sullivan Theater in like the mid-nineties, what they would probably do is say, ‘Listen, Stephen, your show is losing X amount of money a year. There’s two things we could do. We could cut the budget in half, maybe move out of the Ed Sullivan Theater, do the show in a small studio that we already own,’ because CBS has a lot of studio space. Cut down on staff. You have 200 people working here. We needed to be 100 people or 60, and instead of you doing your show five days a week, we’re gonna do your show four days a week, and you’re gonna pre-tape your Thursday show, so you’re actually gonna be in production three days a week. That’s a way right there to cut the budget at least in half … Instead they’re turning the lights out completely at 11:30, which says to me, it’s like CBS is just cooked. I mean, you got, it’s just, it is cooked. They are saying, ‘We are done.'”
What Happens Next
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will end in May 2026.
The Paramount and Skydance merger is expected to close on or before October.