Stephen Colbert has declared that "the gloves are off" as he "can finally speak unvarnished truth to power" before his talk show goes off the air next year.
The comedian shocked viewers last week when he announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert had been cancelled and would come to an end in May 2026.
While executives at the network at CBS insisted it was a "purely financial decision", many noted that Colbert's show was cancelled days after the host criticised CBS's parent company, Paramount, for agreeing to pay U.S. President Donald Trump $16 million (£12 million) to settle a lawsuit.
Addressing his axe in his opening monologue on Monday night, the TV personality warned that he wouldn't be holding back with his criticism of Trump over the next 10 months.
"Cancel culture has gone too far," he quipped, adding that CBS "made one mistake" by leaving him "alive" as he raised his eyebrow to the camera in a comical villain style.
"Now for the next 10 months, the gloves are off. I can finally speak unvarnished truth to power and say what I really think about Donald Trump, starting right now," he declared, before joking, "I don't care for him. Doesn't have the skillset to be President. Just not a good fit."
The 61-year-old also responded to Trump, who wrote on Truth Social on Friday that he "absolutely love(d) that Colbert got fired".
With mock outrage, Colbert said, "How dare you, sir? Would an untalented man be able to compose the following satirical witticism?"
Looking directly into the camera, surrounded by a frame that said "Eloquence Cam", the host simply declared, "Go f**k yourself."
Addressing Trump's claim that Jimmy Kimmel would be the next to lose his talk show, Colbert replied, "Absolutely not. Kimmel, I am the martyr. There's only room for one on this cross."
Before the taping, a crowd of around 100 people gathered outside the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York to protest Colbert's cancellation.
The host was also supported during the episode with cameo appearances from Lin-Manuel Miranda and 'Weird' Al Yankovic, who performed Coldplay's Viva La Vida, as well as fellow talk show hosts Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, John Oliver and Jon Stewart, and Happy Gilmore co-stars Adam Sandler and Christopher McDonald.
