“Go F* Yourself.” — Jon Stewart Explodes at CBS Over Colbert’s Cancellation, Calls Network Move “Cowardly, Shameful, and Gutless”**

Jon Stewart didn’t just push back Monday night.
He detonated.

In his most blistering monologue since returning to The Daily Show, Stewart ripped into CBS and its parent company Paramount Global for canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert — and made it clear this wasn’t just a programming decision. To him, it was surrender.

“The fact that CBS didn’t try to save their No. 1 late-night show — a franchise with over 30 years of cultural weight — isn’t just short-sighted. It’s cowardly,” Stewart declared, face tight, voice seething. “Was this about money? Or was this about making sure Donald Trump sleeps easier during your $8 billion merger?”

From the moment Stewart took his seat behind the desk Monday night, it was obvious he came armed with more than jokes. He came with rage — and receipts.

A Blistering Breakdown of the Real Stakes

Colbert announced last Thursday that The Late Show would end in May 2026. CBS blamed “financial pressures.” But Stewart wasn’t buying the narrative.

“Don’t tell me this is about money,” Stewart said. “This is about fear. This is about appeasement. This is about neutering anything that makes your billion-dollar handshake with Skydance easier to swallow.”

He wasn’t done.

“You’re canceling a show that built value for you. A show that challenged power. A show that didn’t just entertain — it informed. And now? You’re tossing it aside like it’s a liability because it made too many jokes that hit too close to Mar-a-Lago.”

His words came like bullets — not shouted, but delivered with surgical fury.

Target: Paramount Global

Stewart then aimed squarely at the corporation pulling the strings: Paramount Global, which owns both CBS and Comedy Central — the latter being Stewart’s current employer.

“You think playing it safe will save you?” he sneered. “If you believe that gruel so bland no one chokes is the future of media, then let me be the first to say: Go f* yourself.**”

The line landed like a hammer. Online, it trended within minutes.

Stewart was referring to Paramount’s pursuit of a mega-merger with Skydance Media — a deal that critics say risks turning journalism and satire into just another line item. He also alluded to the $16 million settlement Paramount recently paid Donald Trump over a 2021 60 Minutes segment — a lawsuit many legal experts dismissed as laughable, but one that ended with a quiet payout.

“That settlement was shameful,” Stewart growled. “You gave him a check, and now you’re giving him Colbert’s timeslot too?”

An Industry Reacts

Stewart wasn’t alone in his fury. Hours after Colbert broke the news, late-night veterans responded swiftly — and in some cases, profanely.

Jimmy Kimmel wrote on Instagram:
“Love you Stephen. F* you (…) CBS.”**

Jimmy Fallon said he was “stunned,” while Seth Meyers called Colbert “a daily source of honesty we’re going to miss desperately.” John Oliver added bluntly:

“This is terrible news. Not just for comedy — for democracy.”

For Stewart, though, this wasn’t about legacy. It was about capitulation.

“The shows you’re canceling helped make that $8 billion valuation possible,” he said. “Now you want to erase them to smooth over your next conference call? Shame on you.”

A Long History, Now Betrayed

Stewart and Colbert go back decades — Colbert began as Stewart’s correspondent on The Daily Show in 1997 before launching The Colbert Report, and eventually taking over The Late Show in 2015. Their bond is personal — and Monday night, Stewart made it clear this hit different.

“You didn’t just cancel a show. You took out one of the last remaining voices that still gave a damn. And you did it quietly, spinelessly, hoping no one would notice. Well — we noticed.”

Final Word

No euphemisms. No sugar-coating.

Jon Stewart showed up not just to mourn a show — but to expose the machinery that killed it.

His words weren’t just passionate. They were furious.
And his message wasn’t subtle:
You don’t cancel Colbert without a fight.
Not while Jon Stewart’s still holding a mic.