Stephen Colbert enjoyed a reunion with his fellow late night talk show hosts Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, John Oliver and Seth Meyers on Monday. The group, who last assembled for their limited-run Strike Force Five podcast during the 2023 WGA strike, helped send off Colbert in style amid his final weeks, ahead of the last episode of The Late Show on May 21.
But while the television icons share plenty of history, they certainly do not share the same salaries. Colbert has spent nearly 11 years at the helm of The Late Show after taking the reins from David Letterman in 2015. Meanwhile, Kimmel remains the ultimate veteran, with Jimmy Kimmel Live! broadcasting on ABC since 2003. Over at NBC, Fallon has marked 12 years hosting The Tonight Show, the same year Meyers' Late Night made its 2014 debut. Not to be outdone, Oliver is currently celebrating his 13th year fronting HBO's Last Week Tonight.
John Oliver - $80 Million
That is right, it is Oliver. The British comedian, who is the creator and host of the Emmy-winning HBO series, boasts a net worth of $80 million according to Celebrity Net Worth. Oliver began his career in British comedy, writing for radio and television and appearing on the satirical panel show Mock the Week. In 2006, he landed his U.S. breakthrough as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, where he quickly became a standout. Premiering in 2014, Last Week Tonight became an overnight sensation, blending deep-dive investigative journalism with satire. The show has since racked up 30 Emmy wins from over 70 nominations. Oliver's initial two-year HBO contract deal earned him $8 million annually. In 2017 he signed a three-year $45 million extension that doubled his salary to $15 million per year. He then landed another three-year deal, doubling his earnings to $30 million per season. At the end of 2023 he signed another three-year extension with no raise, keeping his annual salary at a steady $30 million through 2027. Outside of his show, Oliver has also done voice work in animated films like The Smurfs and Disney's 2019 remake of The Lion King. He has also served as an executive producer on a number of comedy projects.
Stephen Colbert - $75 Million
Colbert comes in second with a reported $75 million net worth. After earning $6 million a year during his early days on The Late Show, Colbert landed a massive raise in October 2019. His contract extension with CBS Corp. guaranteed his spot on the network through 2023 and bumped his annual salary to $15 million, according to Forbes. He extended his stay once again in mid-2023, signing a subsequent three-year deal. Colbert shockingly announced on July 17 that Paramount/CBS would not be renewing his contract after 11 years on the air, and they would end the late-night program. At the time, the network claimed it was 'purely a financial decision,' but the cancellation came days after Colbert called Paramount/CBS's $16 million lawsuit settlement with President Donald Trump 'a big fat bribe.' Paramount was also in the midst of a multibillion-dollar merger with the movie studio Skydance, which requires the government approval of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Aside from his hosting gig, Colbert has also written bestselling books, lent his voice to animated characters in shows like Monsters vs. Aliens and The Venture Bros. and performed on Broadway. After he wraps up his show, Colbert has a surprising new gig lined up for his retirement. The talk show host and his son, screenwriter Peter McGee, will be adapting the next Lord of the Rings movie from Warner Bros. The film is currently titled The Lord of the Rings: Shadows of the Past, and will be written by Colbert, his son and Philippa Boyens. The announcement came in March via the studio's various social media platforms, with Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson joining Colbert for a video call. Colbert shared that the film will be based on chapters Three Is Company through Fog on the Barrow-downs, from J.R.R. Tolkien's epic high-fantasy novel The Fellowship of the Ring.
Jimmy Fallon - $70 Million
Fallon takes third place on the list with a reported $70 million net worth. The comedian rose to fame in the 1990s as a cast member on Saturday Night Live. After leaving the show he starred in several movies including Taxi and Fever Pitch. He started hosting Late Night with Jimmy Fallon in 2009. And in 2014, he succeeded Jay Leno as host of The Tonight Show. Fallon's annual salary for hosting the show is $16 million, as per Forbes. Fallon is far more than just a talk show host. The Emmy and Grammy winner is also an accomplished children's book author and frequently collaborates with musicians.
Jimmy Kimmel - $50 Million
Kimmel comes in at fourth with a reported $50 million net worth. His annual salary is believed to be $16 million, according to Forbes. Kimmel worked for several radio stations before landing a role as the co-host of the Comedy Central Show Win Ben Stein's Money in 1997, raising his profile nationally. Upon leaving the TV show in 2001, he co-hosted and co-produced The Man Show on the network while also working to produce other shows such as The Andy Milonakis Show, Sports Show with Norm McDonald and Crank Yankers. After being hired by ABC, Kimmel debuted his TV talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! in January 2003, which has since become the longest-running late night TV talk show in the network's history. Over the course of his long career in the entertainment industry, Kimmel has won and been nominated for many notable accolades, including the Emmy Awards, People's Choice Awards, Critics' Choice Awards and many others. Kimmel has landed in hot water with President Donald Trump a number of times. The late night host recently joked about First Lady Melania Trump having 'the glow of an expectant widow' at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in a mock speech that aired just two days before the real event. Unbeknownst to him, an armed gunman would try to storm the dinner at the Washington Hilton ballroom in what authorities believe was an assassination attempt against Trump and his cabinet members. In the wake of the incident, both Melania and her husband have urged ABC - which airs Jimmy Kimmel Live! - to fire the comic, who had previously drawn heavy criticism from the president for harsh remarks about Charlie Kirk's murder - comments that saw him suspended by the network for a week last September.
Seth Meyers - $25 Million
Meyers pulls the lowest salary among the major network hosts, with a reported net worth of $25 million. The television host takes home $5 million per year for his hosting duties on Late Night. The comedian first shot to fame during a 13-year run on Saturday Night Live (2001–2014), where he served as head writer and became a household name anchoring the Weekend Update segment. He took over as host of NBC's Late Night in 2014, following Fallon's departure to The Tonight Show. Outside of his hosting duties, he has also performed stand-up comedy and written for a number of comedy projects. Meyers has racked up numerous Emmy nods for his writing across both SNL and Late Night, alongside a Writers Guild of America Award win. On Monday, Meyers and his late night pals revealed they will be teaming up for an 'emergency' Strike Force Five podcast episode to support Colbert. The new Strike Force Five episode is set to premiere this Wednesday, which just so happens to be Colbert's 62nd birthday. All of the podcast's proceeds will benefit the World Central Kitchen, an international nonprofit founded in 2010 by Chef Jose Andres, which provides meals during humanitarian crises.
Jon Stewart - $120 Million
Though he sat out the big televised reunion, fellow late-night titan Jon Stewart tops the list with a reported net worth of $120 million. Stewart currently hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show once per week, but at the height of his career he was making a staggering $25 million a year. During Monday's reunion Colbert joked that Stewart missed out on the fun in order to annoy President Trump. 'The five of us being here right now, obviously, it's dangerous because we represent so much of late night. Jon Stewart is the designated survivor tonight,' he said. 'Someone has to survive for the president to be mad at.' CBS and Comedy Central owner Paramount confirmed last year that it re-upped the longtime Daily Show host's contract through 2026, months after CBS announced the cancellation of Late Night with Stephen Colbert. Stewart also has a string of film and television credits, including roles in Half Baked (1998), The Faculty (1998), Big Daddy (1999), and Death to Smoochy (2002). The comedian has also hosted the Grammy Awards in 2001 and 2002, as well as the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. In the mid-1990s Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, which has produced hits like The Colbert Report. The late-night icon is also a published writer. His 1998 book Naked Pictures of Famous People was a New York Times bestseller, while his contribution to 2004's America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction earned a Quill Award and Publishers Weekly's Book of the Year title.
