In a wholesale late-night talk show change, CBS is exiting the space with the cancellation of the Late Show With Stephen Colbert, sunsetting the franchise that launched in 1993 with David Letterman as host.

Great ratings and brand recognition weren’t enough to save the long-running franchise.

Stephen Colbert shocked his audience and late night fans, announcing CBS had decided to cancel his long-running show. “The Late Show” is the most-watched late night talk show on television, but it is expensive to produce and has faced declining ratings.

"We'll land on our feet," the host and comedian insisted. "I've been kicked out of s----ier establishments than that."

But that chatter went cold when audience numbers showed Cannon’s show picking up just 400,000 viewers, making it the lowest-rated talk show at the time, according to Celebrity 411. Williams ...

After Drew Barrymore announced she was putting her show back on hold amid the ongoing WGA strike, "The Talk" and "The Jennifer Hudson Show" have done the same.