Stephen Colbert addresses ‘Late Show’ cancellation in emotional Emmys 2025 speech

Stephen Colbert made an emotional plea to Hollywood execs to hire his staff as he addressed his “Late Show” cancellation in a surprise monologue at the 2025 Emmy Awards Sunday night.

The comedian, 61, was greeted to a standing ovation as he graced the stage to present the first award for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.

The audience erupted into thunderous cheers and applause as A-listers rose to their feet, chanting “Stephen!” in unison, while Colbert looked on in awe.

“Thank you very much! You’re very kind! Sit down. We’ve got to go,” he told the audience, before addressing the cancellation of his long-running talk show.

“While I have your attention, is anyone hiring?” he quipped, prompting the audience to burst into laughter. “Because I’ve got 200 very qualified candidates with me here tonight, who will be available in June.”

The comic, whose show comes to an end in May 2026, joked that he had brought his resume to the star-studded event, as well as an old headshot of himself.

“I haven’t had a chance to update my head shot in a bit, but I think it still works,” he quipped, showing an old black-and-white photo to the audience. “I am in there somewhere.”

He then asked Hollywood legend Harrison Ford to pass along his resume to filmmaker Stephen Spielberg, with the actor promptly retrieving the resume during the funny exchange.

Colbert then returned to the mic to present Seth Rogen with the award for Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role in “The Studio.”

Toward the end of the award ceremony, the crowd began to chant Colbert’s name again when he accepted the Emmy for outstanding talk series for “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.”

“I want to thank CBS for giving us the privilege to be part of the ‘Late Night’ tradition, which I hope continues long after we’re no longer doing this show,” he said in his speech.

“Ten years later in September of 2025, my friends I have never loved my country more desperately. God bless America. Stay strong. Be brave. And if the elevator tries to bring you down, go crazy and punch a higher floor!”

It was revealed in July that CBS had decided to cancel Colbert’s show after 10 years of being on the air.

The network has publicly cited financial reasons behind the decision to ax the show.