The clock is ticking on the end of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. As the countdown continues until the show wraps for good in the 2026 TV schedule, the goodbyes are starting to roll in. This week, The Tonight Show's Jimmy Fallon decided to make his fellow late night host and friend feel special with two gifts as the host gets ready to get off what he calls his “flaming toboggan ride” of a job.
Jimmy Fallon Surprises Stephen Colbert With A Personalized Gift
When Jimmy Fallon guested on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Thursday, he made it bittersweet in how he commemorated his friend with two early goodbye messages. The first of two big gestures was gifting Colbert a personalized painting of the host on a boat with his dog Benny. Check out what Fallon said about arriving at the idea on the show:
I was thinking of you and wanted to commemorate what you’ve done and everything. We’ve been great friends for a long time, so I wanted to have a painting made for you. This is real. I texted your wife again, Evie, I’m sorry to bother her. I said, ‘I know how much you love your family –and you love Evie– is there a great photo of you Stephen would like as a portrait or a painting?’
Fallon plotted with Colbert’s wife of 33 years on landing on the specific photo to inspire the gift. As he continued:
And so, she sent me, I’m not kidding, probably 150 photos. I have more photos of you on my phone than you probably have on your phone. But then she sent me one photo that was just you and your dog Benny on your boat, just going out…and that just kind of got me right there. I just thought it was so kind of you, and so I actually had this painting made.
How sweet is that? You can check out the painting below:
Fallon added that he had “Freedom” inscribed on the boat and noted that the painting could symbolize how “where you’re going is unknown.” He also added that the letters on the life preserver in the painting include the initials of his whole family. Colbert looked really touched by the gift, and what a great one it is. But that wasn’t it for Fallon’s early sendoff to his late night colleague.
Jimmy Also Serenaded Stephen Colbert
Fallon also broke into song on the segment to sing his own version of “I Did It My Way” by Paul Anka catered specifically to Colbert’s eleven-season run on his CBS late night show. You can watch it below:
It was announced that The Late Show With Stephen Colbert would end back in July less than 48 hours after the host criticized Paramount and President Donald Trump on the show. CBS has cited the cancellation as a “purely financial decision,” but many have claimed it could be politically driven.
Since the cancellation news, Colbert hasn’t stopped taking aim at CBS, such as through some comments he made about the network telling him not to air one interview he conducted with a Texas state representative James Talarico. As Colbert’s finale date of May 21 continues to approach, the late night show has been piling on wins and Colbert has been making a bucket list on what interviews he wants to conduct before he bids adieu.
For now, you can see new episodes of Colbert’s late night show on CBS on weeknights (and the next day on Paramount+).
