Trump’s AI – A day after Stephen Colbert’s final “The Late Show” aired, President Donald Trump, 79, posted an AI-generated video on X showing him grabbing Colbert, throwing him into an on-stage dumpster, shutting the lid, and smirking while dancing.
By the time Stephen Colbert’s final “The Late Show” was out in the world, President Donald Trump wasn’t treating the ending like a solemn goodbye.
Instead, a day after the last episode aired—on Thursday, May 21—Trump, 79, posted an AI-generated video of himself and Colbert on X on Friday, May 22.
In the clip, an AI version of Trump walked up to an AI version of Colbert on “The Late Show” and grabbed him by the shoulders. Trump then picked up Colbert and threw him into an on-stage dumpster. With Colbert inside, the AI Trump closed the dumpster’s lid and smirked before beginning to dance.
The footage wasn’t just shared under Trump’s account. The AI video was also posted on the official White House account on X, with the caption, “Bye-bye 👋.”
Colbert, 62, had already responded publicly to the show’s cancellation with sharp language of his own. Trump had called the end a personal victory. posting on his Truth Social page on Friday. July 18—one day after Colbert. 61. announced the cancellation—that he “absolutely love[s] that Colbert got fired.” Trump added that Colbert’s “talent was even less than his ratings. ” writing that on Friday. July 18.
Trump also used Truth Social on Friday to frame the cancellation as the start of a broader purge. “Stephen Colbert’s firing from CBS was the ‘Beginning of the End’ for untalented. nasty. highly overpaid. not funny. and very poorly rated Late Night Television Hosts. ” he wrote. Trump then added, “Others, of even less talent, to soon follow. May they all Rest in Peace!”.
The timeline behind the decision fed the backlash from viewers when the show was canceled. The final episode aired on Thursday. May 21. almost a year after CBS announced in July 2025 that “The Late Show” was being axed. Network executives responded with a statement defending their call to pull the plug. insisting the decision was not “related in any way to the show’s performance. content or other matters happening at Paramount” and saying it was based on financial reasons.
That defense still didn’t fully quiet questions about timing. Critics pointed to an episode in which Colbert spoke out about Paramount, CBS’ parent company, settling what Colbert described as “a nuisance lawsuit” brought by Trump.
In the lawsuit, Trump alleged that “60 Minutes” had unfairly edited an interview of Kamala Harris.
Colbert addressed the skepticism himself in an April interview when asked about viewers who questioned why his late-night show was ending. “I do not dispute their rationale [that it was for financial reasons],” Colbert told The New York Times in April. “I do make jokes about it.”
He also said he understood why people were skeptical: “But I also completely understand why people would say (A) that doesn’t make sense to me and (B) that seems fishy to me. ” he noted. “Because the network did it to themselves by bending the knee to the Trump administration over a $20 billion. settled for $16 million. completely frivolous lawsuit.”.
Donald Trump Stephen Colbert The Late Show AI video X White House account Truth Social CBS Paramount cancellation 60 Minutes Kamala Harris