The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Also known as	Late Show (franchise brand) A Late Show with Stephen at Home / A Late Show with Stephen Colbert (COVID-19 pandemic; March 2020 – June 2021)
Genre	Late-night talk show News/political satire
Created by	David Letterman
Developed by	Stephen Colbert Jay Katsir Opus Moreschi
Written by	Ariel Dumas Jay Katsir (co-head writers)
Directed by	Jim Hoskinson
Presented by	Stephen Colbert
Starring	Jon Batiste and Stay Human Louis Cato and The Late Show Band
Narrated by	Jen Spyra
Theme music composer	Jon Batiste
Opening theme	"Everyone (Intro)" by Stay Human (2015–2016) "Humanism" by Stay Human
Ending theme	"I'm from Kenner" "The Art of the Bumper"
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	8
No. of episodes	1,490 (as of May 9, 2024) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Stephen Colbert Jon Stewart Chris Licht (2016–2022) Tom Purcell Barry Julien
Production locations	Ed Sullivan Theater, Manhattan, New York Colbert's homes in New Jersey and South Carolina (2020–2021, COVID-19 pandemic)
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	40 minutes
Production companies	Spartina Productions Busboy Productions (uncredited) CBS Studios
Original release
Network	CBS
Release	September 8, 2015 (2015-09-08) – present
Related
The Colbert Report Our Cartoon President Tooning Out the News
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The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is an American late-night news and political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second iteration of CBS' Late Show franchise. The program is taped at the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City, the same studio as its predecessor Late Show with David Letterman. It airs live to tape in most U.S. markets weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET/PT, as with its competitors Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Colbert was announced as the new host in April 2014, after existing host David Letterman announced his intention to retire earlier in the month; Colbert had previously hosted Comedy Central's news satire The Colbert Report, a program where Colbert portrayed a character named Stephen Colbert as a parody of conservative pundits. As such, the series has carried a stronger focus on discussing and satirizing current events, especially within U.S. politics. Some of Colbert's staff moved to The Late Show, along with Jon Stewart – who previously hosted The Colbert Report's parent series The Daily Show – serving as an executive producer.

The Late Show has remained the highest-rated U.S. late-night talk show for seven consecutive seasons as of 2023, marking the longest winning streak in franchise history over its competitors; since 2019, it exceeded The Tonight Show in key demographic viewership.