The late-night panorama has historically been a fiercely aggressive area for TV present hosts, so it’s price trying out how The Late Present with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Reside, and The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon examine within the scores. It is particularly attention-grabbing as late-night internet hosting is a dying artwork kind, in keeping with a current interview with Seth Meyers.
The comic would know since he has hosted Late Evening with Seth Meyers for years. Nonetheless, though Meyers famous that podcasts take numerous potential viewers members and comedians away from the format, LateNighter’s most up-to-date evaluation of the scores of main late-night exhibits proves {that a} handful of hosts are nonetheless faring comparatively effective, Meyers included.
Per LateNighter:
“(The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) averaged 2.42 million viewers across 41 first-run episodes, comfortably outpacing ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live (1.77 million) and NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallen (1.19 million). In the advertiser-coveted 18–49 demo, however, Kimmel surged ahead with 220,000 viewers—his strongest performance in a year—edging out Colbert (219,000) and leaving Fallon (at 157,000) in a distant third.”
Stephen Colbert Is 2025’s King of Late Evening (So Far)
The Late Present Host Commanded An Viewers Share of 9.22%
Though Maddie Rice left The Late Present with Stephen Colbert just a few years in the past, Colbert’s stint internet hosting the present has seen him go from power to power in an in any other case unpredictable late-night panorama. Whereas Jimmy Kimmel Reside did boast a barely increased viewers share amongst 18-34-year-olds, Colbert’s 9.22% remained far increased than its closest opponents.
Associated
Why We’re In The Final Days Of The Late-Evening Discuss Present Period As We Know It
After maintaining audiences laughing for many years, late-night speak exhibits may sadly be effectively on their strategy to changing into relics of a distant previous.
If anybody appears able to unseat Colbert, it could be Meyers, who instructions 5.08% of viewers after 12:30 in comparison with Nightline’s 4.25% and After Midnight’s paltry 3.36%. With these numbers in thoughts, it’s hardly surprising that CBS’s After Midnight was canceled earlier in 2025.
The titans of the business have retained spectacular viewers numbers, however there may be seemingly little room for a brand new competitor to emerge.
On this regard, Meyers’ doomsaying concerning the state of late-night acquired one factor proper. The titans of the business have retained spectacular viewers numbers, however there may be seemingly little room for a brand new competitor to emerge when even The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon’s viewership dropped by 29% in viewers between 18-49 in comparison with the identical interval a 12 months earlier.
Our Take On 2025’s Late Evening Scores So Far
Seth Meyers’ Spectacular Show Is A Welcome Shock
The truth that the Emmys solely nominated three late-night exhibits in 2025 proves that the tv staple is in some kind of bother, however these scores must be reassuring for followers of The Late Present with Stephen Colbert. Nonetheless, it’s Meyers’ spectacular scores that stand out, contemplating his later time slot.
Meyers’ recognition proves that the late-night style nonetheless has its promising titles, even when The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon’s declining viewership proves that Meyers’ worries concerning the format are legitimate. Whereas Jimmy Kimmel Reside and The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon each survived, solely The Late Present with Stephen Colbert has actually thrived in 2025’s scores up to now.
Supply: LateNighter
SIGN UP NOW!
The Late Present
Showrunner
Christopher Andrew Licht
Administrators
Jake Plunkett, Jim Hoskinson, Ballard C. Boyd
Writers
Emmy Blotnick, Michael Brumm, Nate Charny, Aaron Cohen, Stephen Colbert
