Stephen Colbert Reveals His Sister Was the 'Deciding Factor' in Hosting ‘The Late Show'
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is nearing the release of its final episode on May 21. Looking back at his career and journey to taking over for David Letterman, Colbert reveals the family moment with his sister that changed everything.
Audiences are saying goodbye to another late-night host, with Colbert speaking exclusively with People about what led him to become one of the biggest stars on TV. He admits that "this gig was never the goal" and grew up on Johnny Carson and Letterman, but he always saw himself as an actor and writer.
After The Daily Show and his own spinoff in 2005, Colbert got the call with an offer to replace Letterman on The Late Show. Taking up the offer wasn't easy, and Colbert reveals he spent four months in therapy trying to accept it. While his manager, James Dixon, eased his worries about being meant for the job, it was his sister who sealed the deal.
"I would have talked to about my mom about this, but she had passed at this point, and so nobody [in my family] knew that I had been offered this job, and I asked my sister, Mary, I said, 'Mary, could you come up?' She lived in D.C. I said, 'Could you come up to New York? I just want to talk to you about something,'" explained Colbert.
He adds that his sister had arrived the next day in New York and immediately asked what was wrong. The late-night host remembers making both of them an old-fashioned before sitting down to reveal the news. It was his sister's reaction that was the "deciding factor."
"And I said, 'Well, Dave is stepping down.' And she just burst into a huge smile, and I said, 'Okay, okay. Mary, if this show works out, CBS should send you a bouquet of flowers because I'm going to take the job because you just smiled.' So her happiness for me getting the gig is the thing that really sealed it for me," he revealed.
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The rest was history, with Colbert stepping behind the desk after Letterman's retirement in 2015. It's been over a decade since he became host, with news of the late-night show's cancellation having been revealed in July 2025. The cancellation happened days after Colbert criticized Paramount's settlement with President Donald Trump. While saying he'll "never stop caring about my country," Colbert admits that political discourse and conversation will not fade.
"I harvest laughter for a living, I'll miss that as much as I'll miss the audience, that camaraderie of us feeling better about our day, being able to talk about it. A lot of things happen in a day, but we bat last, and I hope it made their day better," he said.
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This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 11:20 AM.