Stephen Colbert's final episode of The Late Show announced the end of the long-running CBS late-night show and closed a chapter on 11 years of his humorous commentary on current events. Although Colbert faced challenges in the early months after taking over from David Letterman, he gained confidence during the 2016 political conventions and became the most-watched late-night program in 2017 by delivering sharp comedic commentary on the Trump administration's first term.

However, Colbert did not seem particularly pleased with the success he achieved in this political climate. In a 2017 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said, "I would trade good ratings for a better president." He added, "We were expecting something that would capture people's attention and change their priorities. My thank you note goes to my amazing team. Because if it's not Donald Trump, something else will be. I hope it's happy, maybe tragic. But whatever happens next, we're ready to talk about it. And we learned that."

During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Colbert transitioned to working from home while informing viewers and shared his emotional reactions to Trump's questioning of the 2020 election results and the January 6 Capitol riot. He went live at the end of that historic day in 2021 to share significant moments with his audience.

Looking back, Colbert expressed in an interview with THR, "I want to be remembered as a comedy show. We collect laughs as part of our profession, and ultimately that's what I want." He also tried to minimize his political impact, stating, "We're not changing the world," and added, "If I'm pursuing some kind of agenda, I'm really doing it wrong because nothing has gone the way I hoped."

To commemorate Colbert's final episode, don't forget to take a look back at the most unforgettable moments from The Late Show.