Inside Colbert’s Late Show Finale: 10 Things You Didn’t See on TV

Stephen Colbert’s final Late Show was one of the more ambitious late-night farewells in recent memory.

The supersized 79-minute finale featured a Beatle, an elaborate sci-fi subplot, and surprise appearances by Elvis Costello, Jon Batiste, Jon Stewart, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, John Oliver, Ryan Reynolds, Bryan Cranston, Paul Rudd, Tig Notaro, Tim Meadows, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and more.

But not everything that happened at The Ed Sullivan Theater Thursday made it to air.

Below are ten things viewers at home didn’t see.

The room was packed with friends and family

As Colbert noted on-air, his brothers and sisters were in attendance for the finale. But they were far from alone. The orchestra level of the Ed Sullivan Theater was filled with friends and family, giving the taping the feel of a private farewell. Among the VIPs: Peter Jackson and former Late Show EP/former CNN president Chris Licht.

Colbert’s opening remarks (mostly) followed his nightly ritual

Colbert’s opening address was framed for viewers as a version of what he usually says to the studio audience before cameras roll. That was largely true: the remarks mirrored the kind of pre-show message Colbert delivered nightly inside the theater. The difference this time was that they were also being delivered for the cameras—and, unlike his usual pre-show warm-up, Colbert’s words were on the teleprompter.

The show’s celebrity arrivals were a top-secret affair

Though The Late Show’s stage door on 53rd Street has long attracted paparazzi and fans, the show went to pains Thursday to keep the finale’s special guests a surprise, keeping looky-loos at bay and erecting special tenting to mask the night’s arrivals. That didn’t stop one enterprising fan from snapping (and posting) a pic of McCartney ahead of the show’s broadcast.

The audience was kept in the dark about the wormhole story

At home, viewers saw the finale slowly develop a sci-fi subplot, with strange sounds, flickering lights, and eventually a giant green portal backstage. Inside the theater, the audience was kept unaware of where that storyline was headed until McCartney’s final act.

“Hello, Goodbye” was performed twice

The finale’s big closing number wasn’t a one-and-done. The group’s performance of “Hello, Goodbye” was shot twice. Audience members were asked not to stand, because doing so would interfere with the cameras’ ability to capture the performance. The crowd complied the first time, but all bets were off for the second performance, when the entire audience rose to its feet.

The full performance ran longer than what viewers saw

The televised version captured the spirit of the closing number, but the in-theater versions of “Hello, Goodbye” ran significantly longer. During the taping, Colbert could be seen singing alongside his wife, Evie McGee Colbert, and their children.

The finale’s coda was not shown in the theater

Though viewers saw Colbert and McCartney backstage powering down the Ed Sullivan Theater, followed by the building getting cosmically shrunk down into a snow globe, the studio audience did not see that coda during the taping.

Colbert thanked CBS

After “Hello, Goodbye,” Colbert took the microphone and gave a heartfelt speech, during which he thanked CBS, joking that only about 50% of what he’d said about the network on-air was true. With his staff and celebrity guests still gathered onstage, Colbert then asked if anyone else wanted to speak. Louis Cato took the mic and delivered a tearful speech of his own.

Jon Batiste led one more song

The night’s final musical moment did not air at all. After Cato spoke, Jon Batiste stepped forward and led the group in a spirited rendition of “When the Saints Go Marching In.” McCartney joined in—on trumpet.

Colbert was among the last to leave the stage

The farewell continued after cameras stopped rolling. Colbert’s staff and celebrity guests remained onstage for photos, lingering in the space that had just been sent into the cosmic beyond for viewers at home.

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