Stephen Colbert Urges Fans to Vote for Jimmy Kimmel in Emmy Race

Stephen Colbert Backs Jimmy Kimmel’s Emmy Bid With Video Appeal

Emerging from his post-late-night hiatus with a freshly grown beard and an ocean backdrop, Stephen Colbert addressed his followers via a video posted to Instagram on Tuesday, reminding viewers that just twenty-four hours remained in Emmy voting. The comedian, 62, directed his audience to cast ballots for Jimmy Kimmel Live! in the Outstanding Variety Series category.

The digital endorsement serves as a return favor. During last year’s Emmy race—which followed CBS’s announcement that it would cancel The Late Show—Kimmel purchased a Los Angeles billboard bearing the message I’m voting for Stephen, as detailed by AOL. While Colbert’s own canceled program earned nine nominations this year, including a nod in the same category, his digital push threw direct support behind his ABC rival.

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Jimmy Kimmel launched his own unconventional Emmy push on August 18 by sharing a montage video on Instagram compiled from clips of President Donald Trump criticizing the host, calling for his firing, and celebrating his temporary suspension by ABC in September 2025. The video concluded with text reading For Your Consideration! alongside a caption thanking the president for his attention.

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“Jimmy Kimmel is a no-talent loser who has beclowned himself with tanking ratings and by spewing disgusting lies to his dwindling audience. He is so devoid of actual talent that nobody with any commonsense would ever watch him unless it was to laugh at his miserable failures.”

Davis Ingle, White House spokesperson, via USA Today

The Outstanding Variety Series category features a competitive field comprised of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Daily Show, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Saturday Night Live, and Colbert’s The Late Show pursuant to Television Academy rules.

Television Critics Association Honors and Post-Late-Night Life

Colbert’s return to the public eye follows a series of honors recognizing his multi-year tenure in late-night television. On August 20, he appeared virtually at the Television Critics Association Awards to accept the prize for outstanding achievement in variety, talk or sketch on behalf of his staff, given the fact that we knew that we were running straight into a brick wall at the end, as he remarked from his kitchen in casual attire and a beard.

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In a separate acceptance message for the TCA Career Achievement Award—filmed while wearing a blazer and bowtie inside an empty bathtub—Colbert joked about receiving the lifetime accolade reported by USA Today.

“Since this is for the lifetime achievement award, I thought I would class things up a little bit with a bowtie and blue blazer, and come to you from the bathtub for this particular acceptance, because it allows me to bathe in – to wallow in, as it were – the adulation that I feel coming my way.”

Stephen Colbert Returns to Instagram After Late Show Finale

Stephen Colbert, late-night host

While CBS officially cited financial reasons for ending The Late Show after an 11-year run that concluded on May 21, fans and commentators have noted the intersecting political pressures surrounding late-night television.

Contrasting Promotional Strategies for Final Emmy Consideration

While CBS launched its own official For Your Consideration reel on YouTube to push for a final trophy for Colbert’s team, sharp-eyed observers noticed a distinct omission in the network’s rollout. Although the network’s video packs in a montage of best moments from the final season, Jimmy Kimmel was left out of the montage entirely despite his past public advocacy for Colbert’s program.

Even so, Colbert’s direct Instagram appeal bypassed network boundaries to aid his fellow comedian as Emmy voters finalize their ballots before the August 26 cutoff.