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TCA: Colbert, Showtime in Talks for Election Night Special

Don’t pencil in anything for your upcoming night off, Stephen Colbert: Showtime’s got plans for you.

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Showtime chief David Nevins said Thursday that he’s in talks about a probable election-night special with the CBS late-night host, whose regular Late Show gig will be pre-empted November 8 by the network’s election coverage.

Although The Late Show has hit a few bumps since Colbert took over as the late-night TV host, one of the biggest staples of the program that has helped it out (especially on social media) has been its political satire.

CBS announced the live episodes, all taking place at the Ed Sullivan Theater in NY, at the Television Critics Association summer press tour Wednesday.

Colbert, who is in his first-season transition from his Comedy Central series “The Colbert Report”, clearly reveled in making his CBS show more topical with convention comedy.

The concept: “Colbert unfettered”, Nevins continued, adding, “He’s promised he will say a couple of curse words”.

“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” will air live Monday, Sept. 26 after the first presidential debate, Tuesday, Oct. 4 following a debate between VP hopefuls Tim Kaine and Mike Pence, and Wednesday Oct. 19, after the third presidential debate.

The Colbert special will give viewers an alternative to traditional news coverage, Showtime said. “Stephen wants to do it”. “And we want to have stuff that feels like it is culturally relevant, and it’s really carved out unique territory”. But doing “The Late Show” live after the Democratic and Republican conventions has returned some of that edginess.

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Like his convention coverage, Colbert will host his post-debate shows from his desk in NY with a to-be-determined list of celebrity guests.

2016 FILE