Just when we had given up hope of getting new episodes of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert before February came to a close, CBS went and surprised us!
Like most shows, The Late Show has been in rerun mode ever since NBC’s coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics kicked off. While we’ve seen a few new shows in primetime and late-night, most of broadcast television has opted for encores instead of new episodes. This included The Late Show which has been in reruns since Thursday, February 5, which was the day before the Opening Ceremony of the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympics.
With The Tonight Show and Late Night both set to remain off NBC’s schedule entirely due to the network’s Olympics coverage and ABC keeping Jimmy Kimmel Live! in reruns, it was looking like the week of February 16 would be another quiet one for late-night fans. Thankfully, CBS has decided to shake things up for the week.
Rather than keeping The Late Show in reruns for the final week of the Winter Olympics, CBS has confirmed it will air a week of new episodes with an amazing lineup of guests planned.
The fun will begin on February 16 as Colbert is joined by legends Jennifer Garner and Emma Thompson. It seems the episode will feature a new edition of The Colbert Questionert, with Thompson slated to take the test during her sit-down with Colbert.
As the week continues, Colbert will welcome a variety of guests including a trio of journalists, a pair of beloved actors, and a special guest joining Louis Cato and the Late Show Band. The lineup for the week also includes a prominent political figure whose appearance is sure to be a highlight of the week with Senator Jon Ossoff sitting down with Colbert on Wednesday night. The full schedule for The Late Show’s upcoming episodes is as follows:
- Monday, February 16: Guests Jennifer Garner and Emma Thomson
- Tuesday, February 17: Guests Kaitlan Colllins and Walter Isaacson
- Wednesday, February 18: Guests Senator Jon Ossoff and Kyle MacLachlan. Thundercat sits in with Louis Cato and the Late Show Band.
- Thursday, February 19: Guests Melissa McCarthy and Michael Pollan.
With the rest of late-night in reruns or off entirely, all eyes will be on The Late Show for our nightly dose of late-night commentary. CBS is smart to not keep The Late Show in reruns for the week, as fans will surely be tuning in to enjoy this week’s new episodes. In fact, we wouldn't be at all surprised to see The Late Show enjoy a strong week of ratings with such little competition.
Colbert will also get the chance to become the first late-night host to react to some of the many headlines to come out of the Winter Olympics. And we'll get to hear his takes on the many developments that have occured in the political landscape within the last several days when The Late Show was on a break.