Stephen Colbert urges Emmy voters to back Jimmy Kimmel

Stephen Colbert urges Emmy voters to back rival Jimmy Kimmel in the outstanding variety series race, joking “look how cute he is!” as ballots close. Colbert’s Late Show is also nominated, returning last year’s favor when Kimmel campaigned for him. The late-night nod comes as Academy voting wraps ahead of the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14.

Key Takeaways

• Colbert posted a social video backing Kimmel with roughly 24 hours left in Emmy voting.
• Both hosts are nominees in the newly merged outstanding variety series category.
• Colbert’s pitch includes the punchline “look how cute he is!” while showing Kimmel’s photo.
• The endorsement returns Kimmel’s public push for Colbert after last year’s talk-series race.
• Nominees also include “The Daily Show,” “Last Week Tonight,” and “Saturday Night Live.”

What did Stephen Colbert say in his Emmy endorsement?

In a video posted on social media, a bearded Colbert sits outdoors on a windswept coastline with a tablet on his lap. He introduces himself with a wry nod to recent upheaval: “Stephen Colbert here, at the end of the world.”

“You know, there’s 24 hours left in Emmy voting, and if you’re anything like me, you haven’t even started yet. So let’s get going,” he said. He called the voting system “kind of weird” this year, then argued that Jimmy Kimmel deserves an Emmy—even if voters have never seen the show.

Colbert then flips the tablet toward the camera to reveal a photo of Kimmel. “Besides, look how cute he is!” he quipped, before asking viewers to “please consider thinking that Jimmy deserves an Emmy. I do. I love you.” Coverage of the clip is in Variety’s report, and more late-night Emmy buzz lives in our Streaming & TV Alerts hub.

Why does Colbert’s endorsement matter in the Emmy race?

Colbert is competing against Kimmel in the same category, so the public plug is unusually generous. The Television Academy merged the former talk and scripted variety fields into outstanding variety series. The five nominees are “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” “The Daily Show,” “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver,” and “Saturday Night Live.”

For Colbert, the race follows the end of “The Late Show” in May after an 11-year CBS run. Its final season earned nine Emmy nominations, including outstanding variety series and outstanding writing for a variety series. He also accepted a Television Critics Association award for outstanding achievement in variety, talk or sketch in a virtual appearance last week.

How does this echo last year’s Kimmel-Colbert campaign?

Last year, after CBS announced it would cancel “The Late Show,” Kimmel ran a loud campaign for Colbert in outstanding talk series. He put up a West Hollywood billboard of himself with the message “I’m voting for Stephen.” Colbert won that category.

This year Kimmel is also running an unconventional campaign of his own, built largely from clips of President Donald Trump repeatedly attacking him and his show rather than from celebrity interviews or monologues. With voting nearly closed and the Emmys set for Sept. 14, Colbert’s playful boost keeps the late-night rivalry in the spotlight—while pointing voters toward his friend and competitor.