When I look back on the 2025 TV schedule, I think I’ll always remember the day I found out The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was canceled. It was truly shocking news, and in the weeks since, many, including his fellow late-night hosts, have shared how upset they are about this choice. Now, as the biggest award show in television creeps up, Colbert’s competitor in both late-night programming and this year’s Emmys, Jimmy Kimmel, is using his platform to support The Late Show instead of his own program.
When the 2025 Emmy nominations came out, it was revealed that Kimmel and Colbert’s shows were both recognized alongside The Daily Show. Now, right after The Late Show’s cancellation, Kimmel called out the choice, and Jon Stewart went on a rant about late-night in the wake of Colbert's cancellation. So, they’ve been advocates and supporters of their fellow host; however, now Jimmy Kimmel has taken it one step further, and it involves a billboard that says (via Variety):
I’m voting for Stephen.
Notably, that messaging is placed right below a line of text that reads “Emmy Award Nominee Outstanding Talk Series,” and there’s a picture of Jimmy Kimmel with his show’s name on the billboard as well. So, it is a classic campaign billboard used to prompt Emmy voters in their decision-making. However, rather than advocate for Jimmy Kimmel Live! he’s supporting Stephen Colbert instead.
According to the report, this billboard is placed at a high-traffic intersection in West Hollywood, and it’s near many major entertainment offices and the Television Academy headquarters. So, voters will see it. It also explained that this “strategically placed advertisement" does two things: it tells Emmy voters to vote for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and it once again likely shows Kimmel’s feelings about CBS’s choice to cancel the long-standing program.
In the weeks since Colbert announced that his show would end in May of 2026, the choice to cancel has been a very controversial and highly discussed one. CBS cited that they did it for financial reasons. However, there’s been a lot of commentary and criticism about how politics could have played into the choice as well – nothing has been confirmed on that front.
Many have spoken out about the decision to cancel The Late Show, and shared their two cents on what Colbert’s career could look like next. This has included the major late-night hosts working right now: Kimmel, Stewart, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers. Other big names in the talk show and comedy space have also shared their thoughts, including Andy Cohen, who thinks “CBS is just cooked,” and Bob Odenkirk thinks Colbert will find a new successful gig easily after his show ends.
Now, as more statements and speculation come out about what this cancellation means, it will be interesting to see how Colbert’s show performs at the Emmys. Since 2015, when he took over hosting the show, it’s received 33 nominations, and it’s never won. That makes it the second most-nominated show to never win (Better Call Saul is the first).
Over the last decade, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (which no longer competes in this category) and The Daily Show have been the only two talk shows to take home the award for Outstanding Talk Series. However, with Kimmel literally telling people to vote for Colbert, it will be interesting to see if Jon Stewart says anything about it, and if The Late Show can finally take home its first trophy.
To see if that happens, you can tune into the 77th Emmy Awards, which will be hosted by Nate Bargatze, on Sunday, September 14 at 8 p.m. ET. It will air on CBS, and you can stream it live with a Paramount+ subscription if you have the Showtime add-on. Meanwhile, episodes of both The Late Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live! will continue airing on weekdays at 11:30 p.m. ET on CBS and ABC, respectively.
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