Byron Allen brings "Comics Unleashed" to CBS

CBS Mornings Byron Allen brings "Comics Unleashed" to CBS .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-cbs-mornings.jpg'); } By Anna Grazulis May 20, 2026 / 5:05 PM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Byron Allen will get to live his late night TV dream this Friday when his nearly 20-year-old show, "Comics Unleashed," fills the time slot opening up after "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" comes to an end Thursday.CBS was already airing "Comics Unleashed" at a later time slot. The show produced by Allen's media company will now air two back-to-back episodes at 11:35 p.m. ET Monday through Friday. "Funny You Should Ask," a game show also produced by Allen's company, will move to the 12:37 a.m. ET slot.CBS announced in July that it was retiring "The Late Show," citing "a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night."Allen offered to put "Comics Unleashed" on CBS at no cost, since the network was already tossing to affiliates that his company owns during the nighttime hours, he said on "CBS Mornings" Wednesday. Allen has maintained his prominent role in a struggling industry, acquiring The Weather Channel, the streaming platform Local Now, and stakes in BuzzFeed as well as CBS, ABC, NBC and Fox affiliates. "At the end of the day, you're throwing me an audience at 1:30 in the morning to my CBS affiliates that I own around the country," Allen said. "I said, 'save your money.'"The media mogul called the canceling of "The Late Show" a "very unfortunate event" and said he will try and hold onto the late night audience."I love Stephen Colbert. I'm a big fan," Allen said. "Once they made the decision, I said, 'OK, this isn't show business. This is business show.'" Allen's love for late night television began when he was young, he told CBS. His mother gave tours at NBC, and he would catch snippets of Johnny Carson performing while waiting for her to get out of work.Allen was around 14 years old when he st...