Stephen Colbert's interview with Texas Senate candidate James Talarico drew 85 million views across YouTube and social media. This happened after a reported rift with CBS. Connect those dots.
According to Deadline, the interview's massive digital reach came amid tension between Colbert and the network. The specifics of the rift aren't public, but the numbers tell the story: Colbert can reach more people on YouTube than CBS's linear audience.
This is the endgame for network late night. Hosts who don't need the network anymore.
Think about the math: The Late Show averages around 2-3 million viewers on CBS. One viral clip gets 85 million views. The power dynamic fundamentally shifts when your digital distribution eclipses your broadcast reach.
Colbert isn't the first to figure this out. Jimmy Fallon built The Tonight Show's relevance on viral moments, not overnight ratings. But Colbert's situation is different - he's leveraging political content that networks increasingly find uncomfortable in our polarized environment.
Networks want safe late night that won't alienate affiliate stations in red states. Hosts want to speak to their actual audience, which skews younger and more progressive and watches on phones, not TVs.
NBC is watching nervously. If Colbert can prove he doesn't need CBS's distribution muscle, what's stopping Seth Meyers or Jimmy Fallon from making the same calculation? Start a podcast, own your content, reach more people, keep more money.
The Talarico interview proves that politically engaged content finds massive audiences online. That's not the kind of programming networks want to defend to advertisers or affiliates. But it's exactly what drives social media virality.
This is how late night evolves - or dies. Either networks embrace that their hosts are digital creators who happen to have TV shows, or they lose their talent to platforms that actually understand how people consume content in 2026.
In Hollywood, nobody knows anything - except that 85 million views speaks louder than any contract.
