After taking a two-week break, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is back with new episodes. This schedule is packed with guests talking about upcoming movies, and there is one popular rerun planned for the week.
There is a bittersweetness to The Late Show’s return. CBS has not U-turned on the decision to cancel the show in May 2026. It means it’s the last return ever in January, and we’re just waiting to see what CBS decides to do with the timeslot come the next season.
For now, we can focus on the return, though. There are some exciting guests, whether you’re interested in current affairs, upcoming movies, or musical performances.
Monday, January 5
The week kicks off with Ethan Hawke coming onto the show to talk about his recent movie, Blue Moon. There is a lot of Oscar buzz around this release, and we can’t wait to see what the two men talk about.
After that, Julie Ioffe will take to the couch. She is a journalist and a leading authority on the Russian-U.S. relations, so she’ll be chatting all about that and the current events in the world. There is a lot to break down!
Tuesday, January 6
On the second night of the week, Jodie Foster heads to the studio to talk about her upcoming crime drama A Private Life. This is a French movie, and she will chat all about her cast, with who is playing who and what to expect.
Then Tracy Letts will chat about Bug, the psychological thriller coming to Broadway. Like with Monday, there isn’t a musical guest confirmed for the night just yet, and it often means we get a surprise guest or it’s just a longer interview slot.
Wednesday, January 7
Chris Hayes will arrive on set for the Hump Day episode. The MSNBC political commentator will chat about everything that keeps him up at night. Considering the state of politics right now, that’s probably a lot!
Making up for a lack of musical performances the first two nights, we’ll get electropop artist Robyn taking to the stage. She’ll perform tracks from her most recent album.
Thursday, January 8
Then it’s all about The Night Manager, which returns for its second season more than 10 years after the first! It’s rare that such a thing will work, but with Tom Hiddleston in the lead, we’re excited. Yes, it’s Hiddleston who will chat with Colbert about the return.
Terry Gross will then chat with Colbert about his NPR program, Fresh Air. As a journalist, he’s also likely to chat about some of the events happening in the world, making it a rather political first week of the show’s return.
Friday, January 9
We get a rerun of the Taylor Swift episode on Friday night. This was one of the biggest episodes of the year, making it clear that it’s not about the host, but about the guests!
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will air weeknights at 11:35/10:35c on CBS.