US President Donald Trump appeared to celebrate the end. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Shortly after the show’s final episode aired on Friday, he posted an AI-generated video of himself throwing host Colbert into a trash can.
The video, shared without a caption, shows Trump dragging Colbert toward a dumpster, then tossing him inside and performing his trademark dance routine to the Village People’s song “YMCA.”
The clip quickly gained attention online because of the long-running feud between the Republican president and one of his most persistent television critics.
The post came just hours after Colbert stepped down from CBS after nearly 11 years as host. late show.
The comedian ended the show on a celebratory and emotional note, leaning more towards music, nostalgia and comedy than politics.
For his farewell episode, Colbert welcomed back several longtime friends and late night hosts, including Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, John Oliver, and Jimmy Fallon. The group, collectively known to viewers as “Strike Force Five,” paid homage to Colbert’s influence on late-night television.
“We’re here to say we miss you,” Kimmel told Colbert during the show.
Myers added, “Yes, without you. Where would Americans turn if they saw a middle-aged white man making jokes about the news?”
Music legends Paul McCartney and Elvis Costello also appeared at the finale, while current and former bandleaders Luis Cato and Jon Batiste also joined in the celebrations.
Colbert and McCartney performed “Hello Goodbye” and symbolically turned off the lights at New York’s Ed Sullivan Theater, the historic venue where the Beatles made their American debut in 1964.
The finale also included a surreal visual effect in which the theater and the show itself were swallowed up by a giant green wormhole resembling the CBS logo.
Trump and Colbert feud
Mr. Trump and Mr. Colbert’s public sparring goes back years, with the comedian repeatedly mocking Mr. Trump, his administration and the MAGA movement in his evening monologue.
Meanwhile, Trump frequently attacked Colbert on social media, questioning his reputation and accusing him of lack of talent.
In one of his harshest attacks last year, President Trump described Mr. Colbert as a “pathetic train wreck” and urged CBS to “put him to sleep” shortly after announcing the show’s cancellation.
CBS claimed the decision was “purely a financial decision against a backdrop of difficult late-night circumstances,” but critics argued that political pressure may have played a role, as Paramount Global was seeking regulatory approval for its merger with Skydance Media.
Colbert did not directly blame Trump for the cancellation, but several comedians and supporters did.
On the eve of the finale, Bruce Springsteen told Colbert, “You’re the first man in America to lose his job because the president can’t take a joke.”
The rift with Jimmy Kimmel
Tensions between Mr. Trump and late-night television are not limited to Mr. Colbert.
President Trump has repeatedly targeted Jimmy Kimmel, demanding that ABC fire the comedian over jokes involving the president, the Epstein files dispute, and first lady Melania Trump.
Kimmel’s show was suspended in 2025 after comments including by conservative activist Charlie Kirk sparked political backlash and regulatory scrutiny.
Colbert’s resignation marks the end late show The franchise began in 1993 under David Letterman.
It also highlights the growing political and commercial pressures late-night TV faces now that viewers are increasingly watching clips online rather than traditional broadcast viewing.
Trump’s AI-generated video, posted shortly after Colbert’s final confirmation, could intensify debates over political influence, media freedom and the increasingly combative relationship between the White House and America’s late-night comedy world.
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