COMICS UNLEASHED WITH BYRON ALLEN Advanced to Replace THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT

With the conclusion of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert scheduled for May, CBS has confirmed that Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen will be moved forward to occupy the 11:35 p.m. time slot for the 2026-2027 television season.

Comics Unleashed is set to debut in this new slot on Friday, May 22nd, featuring consecutive 30-minute episodes each night on CBS, with simultaneous live streaming available on Paramount+. Since its launch in 2006, this roundtable-style comedy talk show has showcased comedians such as Sebastian Maniscalco, Tiffany Haddish, Gabriel Iglesias, Cedric the Entertainer, and Nate Bargatze.

Following that hour, the Jon Kelley-hosted comedy game show Funny You Should Ask, also produced by Allen Media Group, will air. It will maintain a similar format with back-to-back half-hour episodes starting at 12:37 a.m.

“I created and launched Comics Unleashed 20 years ago so my fellow comedians could have a platform to do what we all love — make people laugh,” Allen stated. “I truly appreciate CBS’ confidence in me by picking up our two-hour comedy block of Comics Unleashed and Funny You Should Ask, because the world can never have enough laughter.”

In July of last year, CBS announced the cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, attributing the decision to financial considerations. The network also disclosed that it would be ending the franchise completely, opting not to appoint a new host to replace Colbert.