Paul McCartney returned to the theater where The Beatles changed America — this time for Colbert’s final show

"The Late Show" with Stephen Colbert closed its curtains on May 21, 2026, with the final episode featuring Paul McCartney as the show's last guest. After airing for 11 years, CBS decided to cancel the show in July 2025, citing financial issues. McCartney's appearance was considered to be a full circle moment because The Beatles made their debut appearance on the "Ed Sullivan Show" in the same building more than six decades ago on February 9, 1964, as per Billboard. The Late Show put a clip of the interview on their Instagram @colbertlateshow on May 21, which has gained 1.2 million views and over 45,000 likes so far.

Not The Pope

Colbert's special guest was kept a secret till the show aired. Previously, he expressed his desire to have Pope Leo XIV as his last guest. But before announcing the guest, a staff member interrupted, saying that the Pope had refused to come out of the green room, the BBC reported. They said, "We didn't read his whole rider, and we didn't get him his snacks." The on-set audience only saw 'The Pope's' hand throwing away a hot dog.

This was all part of the skit, and Colbert immediately recovered, "The Pope, who was definitely my guest tonight, has cancelled. We already sent the other stars away. This is terrible. Who's going to be my last guest now?" As part of the plot, Sir Paul McCartney was "fortunately" in the area and decided to come in for the last episode.

Curtains closed

McCartney shared how he felt about returning to the building that started it all for The Beatles. He told Colbert that America was "where all the music we loved came from, all the rock 'n' roll, the blues, and the whole thing. America was just the land of the free, the greatest democracy. Yes, that was what it was. That's what it still is, hopefully." The news outlet also revealed that several prominent individuals wanted to be guests for the last episode. This included Paul Rudd, Bryan Cranston, Ryan Reynolds, and more. However, they were not selected.

People who watch The Late Night Show 

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was popular and widely recognized among the American audience. It was the 18th most popular show on CBS and ranked 41st among shows on television. By May 2026, there were a total of 2,730,000 viewers watching it. 

As the show has come to an end, it has become clear that Colbert was loved by his fans. The outlet revealed one fan who flew over eight hours with no sleep from Amsterdam to America, just to give Colbert a proper send-off. Colbert and McCartney closed the show with a performance of "Hello, Goodbye." They went backstage after the song ended and forever turned the lights off on "The Late Show."

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