It may be the only late-night TV show with an expiration date, but The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is still the genre's biggest draw. So it's fitting that former Vice President Kamala Harris is giving the comedy show a prestigious honor.
Harris will be a guest on the Thursday, July 31, episode of The Late Show. In a surprising move, it will be the former presidential candidate's first interview since the 2024 election. It also comes after Harris announced she will not run for governor of California, but is writing a book about her 107-day campaign for the White House. The politician will make her eighth overall appearance on the CBS late-night show.
Stephen Colbert previously interviewed Harris on The Late Show in October 2024. The Democrat also made an appearance on Saturday Night Live just a couple of weeks later in an effort to help late-night TV push her to an election victory.
Harris and Colbert will have a lot to talk about, including how both went up against Donald Trump and lost. At least, that's the narrative that continues to swirl around Paramount's decision to cancel The Late Show after May 2026. Colbert responded with a "go f*** yourself" when Trump gloated about the comedian's late-night fate. Don't expect quite the same aggression from Kamala Harris.
Instead, she's likely to reflect on her experience running a presidential campaign at a breakneck speed after President Joe Biden stepped aside. Harris may also explain why she won't run for governor of California and what it means for her political future. And Colbert will want to hear Harris's assessment of Trump's first six months in office, contrasting it with what the Democrat would have done differently.
Odds are slim that Colbert will press Harris to comment on what exactly went wrong for her in the election. Of course, a truncated campaign didn't help. But it's unlikely Colbert will question what Harris knew about President Biden's mental state before dropping out of the race or pressure the ex-VP on what she would have done differently.
The more likely scenario is that Kamala Harris gets a standing ovation from the crowd inside the Ed Sullivan Theater. Colbert's interview won't do anything to disprove critics saying he's too cozy with the left. The only unexpected aspect of Harris on The Late Show may be how far Colbert uses the conversation to insult, mock, and annoy Donald Trump.