Stephen Colbert used his Emmy Award win to praise the 200 people who work on “The Late Show” and to land a sharp joke at Donald Trump’s expense.
During his Tuesday-night monologue, Colbert first offered an affectionate tribute to the broadcast’s staff before holding up his trophy and quipping, “Speaking of Emmys, Donald Trump doesn’t have one.” The line drew loud cheers from the studio audience.
Trump has voiced longstanding grievances about awards shows in general and the Emmys in particular, especially in relation to his reality series The Apprentice. He has said he never received an Emmy for the program, has claimed he should have won “many times over,” called himself “screwed” out of the award and described the ceremony as having “no credibility.” Colbert’s joke referenced that history of public complaints and drew attention to that unresolved grievance.
Colbert, a former Emmy winner and frequent critic of Trump on his late-night program, has used awards acceptance moments in the past to roast political figures and to recognize his staff. Tuesday’s remarks combined both impulses, pairing a backstage acknowledgment with a pointed comedic barb aimed at a prominent critic of late-night television and awards institutions.
The exchange highlights an ongoing cultural tension between late-night hosts and public figures who object to how they are portrayed in comedy and awards programming. Comedy awards and ceremonies have occasionally been cited by public figures as biased or unfair when jokes at their expense are included; Trump’s repeated public complaints about not receiving Emmys for The Apprentice remain among the more notable examples.
Colbert’s joke follows a familiar pattern for late-night television, where hosts balance recognition of their production teams with topical humor directed at political leaders and public personalities. The moment underscored both the communal nature of producing a nightly comedy show and the continued entanglement of entertainment awards with political and personal grievances.