Late-night host Stephen Colbert joked Tuesday night that his “beloved” parent company could keep his show on the air, pointing to the ongoing bidding war to purchase Warner Bros. Discovery.
Paramount Skydance, the parent company of CBS, is seeking to outbid Netflix to purchase WBD, offering $108.4 billion. Netflix initially outbid Paramount and Comcast on Friday in the bidding competition, announcing that it would be purchasing the Hollywood giant at a price of $27.75 per share, or around $82.7 billion.
“Wow! I’ve got to say, if my company’s got that kind of green, I’m sure they can afford to uncancel one of their best shows,” Colbert said on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
CBS announced the decision to cancel Colbert’s show in July, and the final episode will air in May 2026. The late-night television show reportedly lost about $40 million a year, with its cancellation taking place the same month Skydance Media merged with Paramount Global.
Colbert also said Paramount got “a little assist” in its bid from Middle Eastern funds, totaling $24 billion from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Colbert joked that he is excited for CBS’s new comedy series “Young Mohammed bin Sheldon,” a parody of the real sitcom Young Sheldon.
Paramount’s bid is also partially backed by Affinity Partners, a private equity firm led by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump.
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Netflix is facing its first class-action lawsuit, filed Monday, over its bid to buy Warner Bros. Discovery. The suit alleges that the deal poses “irreparable antitrust injury” to American consumers by reducing competition in the subscription video-on-demand market.
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison addressed his company’s bid to buy WBD on Monday, saying he’s “trying to save” Hollywood’s theatrical business. Ellison also envisioned a business model of his company releasing “30 movies a year in theaters” should it succeed in this bidding war.