Jim Rutenberg on the growing pains of Stephen Colbert's Late Night. I still think Colbert is the most talented guy to get one of those slots in years, maybe since Letterman. I was wrong to think that once he'd settled in, the show would get less scripted and would rely more on his well-proven ability to improvise on the fly. If anything, it was getting less spontaneous before the new showrunner arrived and since he's taken over, it sure hasn't gotten more so. If anything, it feels more carefully packaged than ever.
I don't think Colbert's in trouble…and if you read that he is, ignore it. Ignore it at least until you hear a credible name mentioned as a possible replacement. It's unlikely to come to that but if it does, I hope someone at CBS, before they give up on a brilliant guy like that, will at least try letting the show be the kind of show where unplanned things could happen.