CBS has officially canceled their late-night comedy show ‘After Midnight’ after just two seasons, with the final episode scheduled to air in June 2025. The show, hosted by the quick-witted rising comedy star Taylor Tomlinson, will not return for a third season, despite CBS having quietly renewed it earlier. This cancellation marks the end of an era, as CBS has also announced that it will cease all original programming in the 12:30 a.m. ET/PT time slot, a position that has been a network staple for nearly 30 years.
The decision to end ‘After Midnight’ was largely influenced by Tomlinson herself, who chose to step away from the hosting role to return to her first love: stand-up comedy. In a heartfelt statement, she expressed her gratitude for the opportunity but emphasized her desire to return to live performances. “Hosting After Midnight has been an incredible chapter,” she said, “but the pull of live performance and connecting directly with audiences on the road is something I need to pursue at this time.”
Stephen Colbert, who executive produced After Midnight through his Spartina Productions banner, praised Tomlinson’s contribution and respected her decision to move on. “We were genuinely excited about the prospect of a third season,” Colbert noted. “But Taylor’s passion for stand-up is undeniable, and we fully support her choice.”
After Midnight launched in January 2024 as the spiritual successor to Comedy Central’s cult hit @midnight, reimagined for the CBS audience. It replaced The Late Late Show with James Corden, becoming the network’s first attempt at a new format for the 12:30 a.m. slot. The show took a refreshingly internet-forward approach to late-night, mining memes, TikToks, and trending topics for humor in a way that made it uniquely resonant with younger, digitally native viewers.
While After Midnight never reached the ratings heights of traditional late-night heavyweights, it filled a cultural niche that had been largely ignored by the networks. With Tomlinson’s comedic sharpness, the show earned critical praise and developed a loyal, albeit niche, audience—especially among Gen Z and younger millennials who are more likely to consume clips on social media than watch live TV.
The show’s quiet renewal for a third season earlier this year had suggested confidence from CBS, but Tomlinson’s decision reportedly prompted the network to rethink its strategy. Instead of finding a replacement host or developing a new show, CBS chose to hand the 12:30 a.m. slot back to its affiliates—a move that underscores broader changes in the late-night TV ecosystem.
CBS’s decision also highlights a harsh truth for linear broadcast: the 12:30 a.m. hour no longer holds the same sway it once did. In the face of shrinking live audiences, rising production costs, and increased competition from streaming and social platforms like YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok, networks are under pressure to reassess their investments in late-night programming. NBC and ABC still maintain their late-night rosters with Late Night with Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and Nightline, but even those shows face growing uncertainty as viewing habits continue to evolve.
It’s worth noting that After Midnight‘s cancellation leaves network late-night TV without a female host—a disappointing development for an industry still working to improve gender representation in key creative roles. Tomlinson, at just 30 years old, was the youngest woman ever to host a late-night network show.
With the end of After Midnight, CBS brings the curtain down not only on a show but on nearly three decades of post-Late Show programming. Since 1995, the network kept the 12:30 a.m. slot alive with The Late Late Show, featuring hosts like Tom Snyder, Craig Kilborn, Craig Ferguson, and James Corden. Now, with no new content planned for the hour, local CBS affiliates will once again have control over late-night scheduling.
For fans of After Midnight, the remaining episodes will be a bittersweet farewell to a show that dared to shake up the formula and speak the language of the internet generation. Whether another network or platform will pick up that torch remains to be seen—but for now, CBS is officially signing off.
