Stephen Colbert poked fun at his former “Daily Show” bud and late night peer Jon Stewart on Wednesday night, cracking a joke about the recent cancellation of the comedian’s Apple TV+ show.
During the opening monologue for “The Late Show,” Colbert discussed President Joe Biden’s meeting on Wednesday with Chinese President Xi Jinping. According to the New York Times, China’s economy has been struggling in part due to “anemic consumer spending and high youth unemployment.”
“It’s gotten so bad that second graders can’t get a job at the iPhone factory,” Colbert quipped. “And I’m being told that in response to that joke, Apple has canceled Jon Stewart again.”
In October, “The Problem with Jon Stewart” was canceled after two seasons. The shuttering reportedly came down to creative differences that had to do with the series’ coverage of artificial intelligence and China. The controversial topics were supposed to be covered in Season 3 of the Apple TV+ series. After asking for creative control, Stewart allegedly walked away from the series after Apple threatened to cancel it.
Colbert isn’t the only one who’s taken notice of the cancelation. The House of Representatives’ Select Committee sent a letter about the series’ ending. If accurate, the letter reads, the ending of the series speaks to “broader concerns about indirect Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence over the creative expression of American artists and companies on CCP-related topics.” The committee, led by Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, also argued that this is another reason why Apple should “accelerate its efforts to reduce its dependence on the [People’s Republic of China] in its core business.”
“The Problem with Jon Stewart” first premiered on the streaming service in September of 2021 and marks Stewart’s third late night show. The comedian also hosted “The Daily Show” during its prime and the short-lived “The Jon Stewart Show.”
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