The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is set to air its final episode next Thursday, May 21.
The controversial cancellation will end Colbert's 11-year tenure at the late night desk, and end the Late Show franchise on CBS, which hit the airwaves in 1993 with host David Letterman—who shared his own message for the network over the cancellation.
With just a few shows left, guests have comprised a cavalcade of some of Colbert's favorites, including former Democratic President Barack Obama, and plenty of jabs at the current POTUS.
On Tuesday's show, actor Julia Louis-Dreyfus sat down with Colbert to promote her new movie The Sheep Detectives, make out a little (more on that later), and give him a proper send off.
Near the end of her segment, Louis-Dreyfus told Colbert:
"Since I know you're a huge fan of 'Veep'..."
Louis-Dreyfus starred as sharp-tongued Vice President Selina Meyer on the HBO series, which ended in 2019, for seven seasons and won six consecutive Emmys for the role.
Turning to the audience, she remarked:
"By the way, he does not know what I'm about to do."
Resuming her conversation with Colbert, she continued:
"I got some of the 'Veep' writers together to write a 'Veep'-style tribute to you."
Channeling Selina Meyer, Louis-Dreyfus then roasted Colbert, much to his obvious delight.
You can see the clip here:
Louis-Dreyfus began with:
"I've been on this show multiple times, and I always thought you were [MSNBC political commentator] Rachel Maddow. Are you not?"
To be fair, there is a resemblance...
I saw a rumor that Rachel Maddow and Stephen Colbert might team up and it brought to mind the classic duo of Linda Ellerbee and Lloyd Dobyns. Ellerbee and Dobyns were must watch TV when I was a young man in the 70's. Maddow and Colbert could be the dynamic one-two punch for this generation....
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— Steve Brady (@stevebrady.bsky.social) July 22, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Then, with a nod to the current political climate where the right to assemble can get you shot by ICE agents, she added:
"Don't be too hard on yourself. You're as relevant as the Bill of Rights."
Louis-Dreyfus next poked fun at the man many believe pushed CBS parent company Paramount Global to cancel Colbert to get FCC approval for their merger with David Ellison's Skydance Media, MAGA Republican President Donald Trump.
The POTUS celebrated Colbert's cancellation and then demanded other late night hosts who hurt his feelings also be canceled.
The actor and comedian also brought up one of the women the Trump presidential campaign paid $130,000 in hush money to in October 2016, just before the election, to not disclose the brief adulterous sexual encounter she had with, paraphrasing her words, the "mushroom king" while Trump was married to First Lady Melania Trump who had just given birth to their son Barron.
Louis-Dreyfus quipped:
"Your cancellation gave Donald Trump so much pleasure. I always think of you as the Stormy Daniels of late night."
The Saturday Night Live alum ended with a jab at Colbert's cancellation, saying:
"When my people said I should come and say farewell to you, I was hoping it would be more of a hospice situation."
Louis-Dreyfus ended with a shot to Colbert's ego and a nod to his fellow late night host Jimmy Kimmel, saying:
"I don't want you to worry. The only reason everyone rallied around Jimmy Kimmel is because he's more popular."
People appreciated the humor and the actor's thoughtfulness in bringing Colbert joy.
At the beginning of her segment, Louis-Dreyfus had asked for a clip from the previous night's program. In a sit-down with his late night colleagues and friends Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Myers, John Oliver, and Jimmy Fallon, Colbert asked the members of the Strike Force Five podcast crew, which they ran during the 2023 Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike and the SAG-AFTRA strike to benefit nonprofit World Central Kitchen, to name which guests they had "made out" with.
Colbert name-dropped Sally Field, Andrew Garfield, Allison Janney, Jeff Daniels, and Helen Mirren, but not Louis-Dreyfus.
As the clip ended, Louis-Dreyfus turned to Colbert and after a little light flirting and references to their respective spouses, the pair shared a somewhat chaste kiss.
A jealous Pedro Pascal asked for his own kiss when he appeared later on the show.
You can watch the full segment with Julia Louis-Dreyfus here:
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