David Letterman Finally Returns to ‘The Late Show’

At long last, the prodigal late night television son has returned home. On Monday night, David Letterman appeared as a guest on The Late Show—the program he hosted for a whopping 22 years—for the first time since he left the show on May 20, 2015. 

Letterman was met with a rapturous welcome and a standing ovation from the studio audience, who chanted “Da-vid! Da-vid!” as he entered the Ed Sullivan Theater. Late Show host Stephen Colbert, who has manned the desk ever since Letterman left, greeted Letterman, who joked that his successor needed to “control your people,” before the two sat down for the interview.

Letterman’s conversation with Colbert lasted longer than 20 minutes on air and covered everything from his son heading off to college, CVS pharmacies, and his long-awaited return to the Ed Sullivan Theater. “I came to the show this afternoon, and people were saying, ‘Yes, may I help you?’” Letterman tells Colbert. “And I said, ‘I’m Ed Sullivan.’ Got me right in.”

When asked what he missed about hosting a late night show, Letterman simply said, “I miss everything…. Mostly, it’s fun.” He continued, “Very few things in life provide one the opportunity—and I can’t speak for you on this topic—but for me, if you muck one up, 24 hours later, you get to try again.”

Letterman has been no stranger in the late night comedy space since leaving The Late Show. He currently hosts the talk show My Next Guest Needs No Introduction on Netflix, where he’s interviewed stars like Billie Eilish, Cardi B, and former president Barack Obama. He’s also appeared as a guest on a bevy of other late night programs and high profile podcasts, including Late Night with Seth Meyers, Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, Marc Maron’s WTF podcast, Conan O’Brien’s podcast, and Jimmy Kimmel Live! multiple times.