Stephen Colbert officially ended “The Late Show” on May 21, but fans who sat inside the Ed Sullivan Theater say the final taping carried moments cameras didn’t catch—most notably Colbert pushing for “Hello, Goodbye” to be done twice after he got swept up by th
When the final taping of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” wrapped up on Thursday, May 21, the story on TV looked like a clean goodbye. But inside the Ed Sullivan Theater, fans say the night ran on emotion, sudden returns to position, and a few performances that never made it to the broadcast.
Colbert’s last onstage moment was a full-circle sendoff: he joined Paul McCartney to sing the Beatles classic “Hello. Goodbye.” Fans inside the building say it didn’t stay a single take. Audience member Ray Lingenfelter, from Eugene, Ore., described how Colbert—so taken by the moment—called for an encore.
“They actually did that take twice, which you might also not see on TV,” Lingenfelter said. “But Stephen got so excited that he said, ‘You don’t get to sing with the Beatles every day.’ So he sent everyone back into position one, and they did [the song] again a second time.”
The final show’s guest list during the live taping included an all-star group: Ryan Reynolds, Elvis Costello, Paul Rudd, and former band leader Jon Batiste. For Batiste, the atmosphere wasn’t just celebratory—it was loaded.
“There was a lot of emotion,” he said after exiting the building, as he waved to fans and got into a waiting SUV. Lingenfelter said the night felt openly sentimental, with “a lot of cameos” and “a lot of people” popping up.
One fan. Steve Hannis. from Mountaintop. Penn. said he drove to New York City believing McCartney would appear. but he didn’t know anything for sure. “I didn’t have any inside information. Everything added up to me to make sense. ” he said. adding that “everyone went crazy” when McCartney stepped out from backstage.
After “Hello, Goodbye,” Hannis said the band began jamming to a brand-new song with improvised lyrics: “We love you, Stephen Baby.” He also said later on McCartney was handed a trumpet for “When the Saints Come Marching In,” led by New Orleans-born Batiste.
Once the taping ended, the emotional momentum didn’t stop at the curtain. Lingenfelter said “Late Show” colleagues delivered what he called “sentimental speeches.” He pointed to band leader Louis Cato, who spoke to what he described as the kind of person Colbert is off-camera.
“He is Stephen’s true friend, who said that behind-the-scenes, [Colbert] is this remarkable person,” Lingenfelter said. “And that’s not something he had seen a lot in the entertainment industry.”
Even fans who have been to previous “Late Show” tapings said this one didn’t feel routine. Lingenfelter said only a portion of the broadcast felt like a standard episode, describing a night in which the celebration was constant and the jokes carried sharper edges.
“Only 20 percent of the show seemed normal,” he said. “They were throwing a celebration. They were all very excited to be here and do it for so long. But you could tell some of their jokes about getting canceled became a little bit more pointed because they didn’t want to go.”
Stephen Colbert Late Show finale Ed Sullivan Theater Paul McCartney Hello Goodbye Beatles Jon Batiste Ryan Reynolds Elvis Costello Paul Rudd Louis Cato television finale