“In 28 years of my show, I never read the news,” O’Brien declared. “I didn’t even know who was president!”
Conan O’Brien is taking a hands-on approach to offering guidance for late-night TV one playful counseling session at a time.
The former host appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Monday to promote his film If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, but he couldn’t resist weighing in on the state of the late-night landscape.
Opening the conversation, O’Brien asked, “Stephen, how’s late night? What’s going on?” poking fun at Colbert’s recent cancellation and Jimmy Kimmel’s brief suspension. “I’ve been out of it for a little bit. Catch me up on what’s happening.”
Colbert shot back with a quip: “I’ll send you the obituary.”
O’Brien then reminisced about a piece of advice he had once shared with Colbert, recalling the moment with affection.
“I remember when I was leaving my late-night show, I took you and the other hosts out,” O’Brien began. “Do you recall? We went to a Sizzler, trays in hand, and I told you all, ‘Take care of late night. If you take care of late night, late night will take care of you.’”
Colbert, suppressing a laugh, nodded. “You did say that,” he admitted.
O’Brien then leaned into mock seriousness. “I also said, ‘Don’t do anything to ruffle feathers. Whatever you do, don’t speak truth to power.’ And I added, ‘Cowardice is the way.’”
Before Colbert could respond, O’Brien quipped, “In 28 years of my show, I never read the news! I had a masturbating bear and a plastic dog. I didn’t even know who was president!”
The remark drew hearty laughter from Colbert’s studio audience. Once the laughter subsided, Colbert deadpanned, “Thanks for being here, Conan.”
Recent weeks have been rough for late-night television. In July, CBS announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will wrap up in May, bringing an end to the franchise that began with David Letterman in 1993 after 33 years on the air.
Some have speculated about the timing of Colbert’s show ending, noting that he had recently criticized CBS’ parent company, Paramount Global, for settling a lawsuit filed by former President Donald Trump—a case many experts believed could have been dismissed on First Amendment grounds—just before a merger with Skydance that required FCC approval. The FCC greenlit the merger a week later. CBS has maintained that the decision to cancel the show was purely financial, citing challenges in the late-night landscape.
Meanwhile, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live was briefly taken off the air for a week after Kimmel made comments about the alleged assassin of conservative activist and Trump supporter Charlie Kirk. O’Brien had previously said that the suspension “should disturb everyone on the Right, Left, and Center.”
Although he didn’t dive deeply into these controversies during his interview on The Late Show, O’Brien set jokes aside to honor Colbert and express admiration for his friend. “I, of course, adore you. I love you. I know you as a person and also a comedic force, and like a lot of people, I’m very sad that this chapter is ending,” O’Brien said. “But I also want to say that you are going to do amazing things, you’re going to have a lot of fun.”
O’Brien went on, “And the connection you have—and this isn’t just you, it’s Mr. Kimmel and [Jimmy] Fallon, all these guys have—it’s very special. The bond you share with the audience is something only you possess. That’s yours for life.”
Viewers can watch O’Brien’s full appearance on The Late Show through the clip above.