At the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, Stephen Colbert and The Late Show took home the award for Outstanding Talk Series, beating out fellow nominees Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Daily Show. This was the first time the popular talk show had ever won in the category, making the victory especially meaningful.
Now it's time for Colbert to get back to work. Due to the 2025 Emmys, The Late Show skipped out on Monday's episode. But the talk show has finally returned, and Colbert had some things to say about his recent win and Donald Trump.
During Tuesday's episode (Sept. 16), Colbert started off his opening monologue by showing off his golden Emmy statuette to the cheerful audience as they stood up from their seats to applaud him. They were even chanting his name over and over again. As the audience's cheers died down, Colbert made a playful remark about how the show “should have gotten canceled years ago,” before expressing heartfelt gratitude to his writers, production team, and everyone who helped make The Late Show a success.
"This award belongs to the 200 hardworking people who make this show, first and foremost, the writers of this show. Every day, they take down everything I say during the show just so that there’s a script at the end of the night as a souvenir for everybody. It’s incredible. They do it every day. But they don’t do it alone.
The stage crew, production staff, talent, editors, the band, control room, props, graphics, research, digital, accounting, legal, wardrobe, make-up, security, maintenance, assistants and interns. And of course, the audience department, who let in all of you gorgeous people every night. Because you, the audience, you people here, you people out there, you are the ones who ultimately make this show possible, so this belongs to you too, but I’m gonna keep it.” - Stephen Colbert
He also added a humorous, over-the-top joke about protecting his Emmy from anyone who might try to touch it. Colbert then took the opportunity to deliver a pointed jab at his longtime rival, Donald Trump, noting during his monologue that while The Late Show had finally earned an Emmy, Trump still doesn’t have one.
Given their ongoing feud that only intensified after Trump gloated online about the show’s cancellation back in July, anyone could've seen Colbert's playful dig coming. Now, all eyes are on Trump’s next move. Having previously taken shots at Colbert on his social media platform, Truth Social, if Trump chooses to respond, it will likely be with another pointed or snarky remark. However, we're sure Colbert will be ready to respond right back if the time comes.
Below, we shared a video of Colbert's opening monologue from Tuesday's episode.
Since its debut in 2015, The Late Show has received a total of 33 Emmy nominations. In addition to winning this year’s Emmy for Outstanding Talk Series, the show’s director, Jim Hoskinson, also earned an Emmy for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series at the 2025 Creative Arts Emmys. That brings the show's total Emmy wins to two, marking a major milestone after years of recognition without a victory.
Trump, on the other hand, has only ever received two Emmy nominations. He was nominated twice for the show The Apprentice in the category of Outstanding Reality-Competition Program, once in 2004 and again in 2005. However, he never won either time, leaving him without an Emmy while Colbert and his team finally celebrated their long-awaited victories this year.
The Late Show is set to end its run on CBS sometime in May 2026.