Stephen Colbert has asked Emmy voters to support Jimmy Kimmel, turning this year’s awards race into an unusual show of solidarity between two late-night rivals.
Stephen Colbert is not campaigning for himself this time.
With Emmy voting nearing its close, the former Late Show host has publicly thrown his support behind Jimmy Kimmel — the very person standing against him in the same category.
Colbert made the appeal in a social media video, using humor rather than a conventional awards pitch.
Sitting outdoors on a windy coastline with a tablet in his lap, Colbert joked about being “at the end of the world” before addressing the final hours of Emmy voting.
Colbert’s Unusual Pitch for Kimmel
Colbert told viewers that only about 24 hours remained to cast their votes and encouraged those who had not yet started to take part.
Then came the more surprising part.
He urged voters to give Kimmel their support, even joking that they should do so regardless of whether they had watched Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
Colbert’s message was deliberately simple: Kimmel deserves the recognition.
To underline the point, Colbert turned his tablet toward the camera and showed a photograph of Kimmel.
“Look how cute he is!” he joked before ending the appeal with another expression of support.
The playful video was more than a joke between two television hosts. Colbert was effectively promoting a competitor while his own program remained on the ballot.
Why Colbert Is Supporting His Rival
The endorsement has a history.
Last year, Kimmel publicly backed Colbert when the two were competing for the outstanding talk series award.
Kimmel even took the campaign beyond television, placing a billboard in West Hollywood featuring himself alongside a message declaring his support for Colbert.
Colbert ultimately won.
Now the roles have effectively reversed.
Instead of Kimmel campaigning for Colbert, Colbert is asking voters to consider Kimmel.
One Category Now Puts Them Head-to-Head
The rivalry looks different this year because the Television Academy has changed the awards structure.
The former talk and scripted variety categories have been combined into Outstanding Variety Series.
That puts both late-night programs in the same five-show field.
The nominees are Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show, Last Week Tonight With John Oliver and Saturday Night Live.
So while Colbert’s public message is friendly, the stakes remain competitive.
A vote for Kimmel is, by definition, a vote that does not go to Colbert’s own show.
Kimmel Has Taken a Different Route
Kimmel’s own Emmy campaign has also attracted attention for its unconventional approach.
Rather than building the promotional video primarily around celebrity guests, interviews or comedy highlights, his campaign uses clips of President Donald Trump repeatedly criticizing Kimmel and his program.
That choice gives the campaign a more political edge than a traditional awards advertisement.
Colbert, meanwhile, has chosen a much lighter strategy: a short personal appeal built around his friendship and history with Kimmel.
A Significant Emmy Moment for Colbert
The awards race comes shortly after the conclusion of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
CBS ended the program in May after an 11-year run.
Despite the show’s ending, its final season remained a major presence in this year’s nominations, collecting nine Emmy nominations.
Those include Outstanding Variety Series and Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series.
Colbert also recently received recognition from the Television Critics Association, appearing virtually to accept an award for outstanding achievement in variety, talk or sketch.
The Bigger Story Behind the Endorsement
Colbert’s decision is notable because it turns a conventional awards rivalry into something more personal.
Two hosts who have spent years competing for attention — and, at times, awards — are now publicly supporting each other.
Last year’s Kimmel-to-Colbert endorsement helped Colbert’s campaign.
This year, with the competition reshaped into a single variety category, Colbert has returned the gesture.
And he did it without a traditional awards speech.
Instead, his message to voters was essentially that Kimmel deserves the Emmy — and, in Colbert’s joking presentation, is apparently pretty cute too.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards are scheduled for Sept. 14, 2026.
