Colbert's 'Canceled Christmas' Cartoon Pits Santa Against a Trump-Style Holiday Takeover

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert has released a timely animated parody for the holiday season, imagining a scenario where Christmas itself gets canceled by Donald Trump.

Aired on Thursday night, the cartoon segment titled "Colbert's Canceled Christmas: The Last Noel" presents a comedic crisis at the North Pole. According to the show, the story begins when Trump unilaterally cancels the holiday, sends Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Santa's home, and demolishes the iconic workshop to build one of his signature ballrooms.

The short follows Santa Claus as he attempts to save Christmas from the brink. The full cartoon was made available on The Late Show's YouTube channel following the broadcast.

PRISM Insight: Late-night comedy increasingly serves as a primary lens for political commentary. By wrapping sharp critiques in familiar holiday tropes, shows like Colbert's make complex political issues digestible and highly shareable, blurring the lines between entertainment and civic discourse.

The parody draws on well-known aspects of Trump's public persona, such as his real estate background and hardline immigration policies, to create a satirical narrative that's both absurd and pointed. It's a classic example of using pop culture to land a political punchline.