‘Lack Of Talent’: Donald Trump Denies Role In Colbert’s Exit, Warns Fallon & Kimmel ‘Next Up’

Last Updated:July 30, 2025, 08:10 IST

Trump said Colbert’s firing was a result of poor ratings and financial losses, not political pressure, adding that Fallon & Kimmel, who trail in viewership, could soon face the axe

A week ago, Donald Trump had posted that he hoped he “played a major part” in Stephen Colbert’s exit. (Image: Reuters)

US President Donald Trump has denied claims that he was responsible for CBS cancelling The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, but used the moment to sharply criticise Colbert and take aim at fellow late-night hosts Jimmy Kimmel (ABC) and Jimmy Fallon (NBC).

In a post on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, Trump wrote, “Everybody is saying that I was solely responsible for the firing of Stephen Colbert from CBS, ‘Late Night.’ That is not true! The reason he was fired was a pure lack of TALENT, and the fact that this deficiency was costing CBS $50 Million Dollars a year in losses — And it was only going to get WORSE!"

He further added, “Next up will be an even less talented Jimmy Kimmel, and then, a weak, and very insecure, Jimmy Fallon. The only real question is, who will go first?"

“Show Biz and Television is a very simple business," Trump said. “If you get Ratings, you can say or do anything. If you don’t, you always become a victim. Colbert became a victim to himself, the other two will follow."

The cancellation of The Late Show has sparked political controversy. CBS executives have said the decision was purely financial and denied any connection to parent company Paramount’s pending $8 billion merger with Skydance, which required approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The announcement came shortly after Paramount settled a lawsuit filed by Trump’s foundation over a 60 Minutes segment featuring former Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump alleged the segment was deceptively edited in violation of Texas consumer protection laws. As part of the agreement, Paramount reportedly paid over $15 million to Trump’s foundation to settle the case, without admitting wrongdoing.

Just days before CBS cancelled his show, Colbert had referred to the settlement on-air as a “big fat bribe" aimed at securing regulatory approval for the merger.

Meanwhile, a press freedom group has filed an ethics complaint against FCC chairman Brendan Carr, alleging that he used his office to pressure Paramount into settling the lawsuit and fast-tracking the merger. Democrats in Congress have also called for an investigation into the deal, the settlement, and the timing of Colbert’s exit.

A week ago, Trump had posted that he hoped he “played a major part" in Colbert’s exit. However, in Tuesday’s post, he distanced himself from the decision while once again targeting late-night hosts.

Ratings data from the second quarter of this year showed The Late Show leading the pack with 2.4 million viewers, compared to 1.8 million for Kimmel and 1.2 million for Fallon.

Kimmel responded to Trump’s comments on Instagram, saying, “I know you’re busy Sharpie-ing the Epstein files, but this seems like a weird way to tell people to watch Matt Damon and Ken Jennings on an all-new Who Wants to Be a Millionaire tomorrow night at 8|7c on @ABC."

Fallon said he was “shocked" by the news.

Seth Meyers, another late-night host, was not named in Trump’s post but recently addressed uncertainty around his own future. “There is this weird thing that I feel like I shifted from fearing that I wouldn’t be good enough. And now my fear is weirdly more outside of my control, which is … just at some point, the ecosystem might not support [late-night]," Meyers said.

News world ‘Lack Of Talent’: Donald Trump Denies Role In Colbert’s Exit, Warns Fallon & Kimmel ‘Next Up’

Read More