'The Colbert Report' announces end date as Stephen Colbert moves to 'Late Show'

NEW YORK, April 10 (UPI) -- The Colbert Report and Stephen Colbert's conservative character are coming to an end.

Soon after CBS announced that Colbert, 49, would succeed David Letterman on Late Night, Comedy Central announced The Colbert Report would end in eight months.

"Comedy Central is proud that the incredibly talented Stephen Colbert has been part of our family for nearly two decades," the network said in a statement via E! News. "We look forward to the next eight months of the ground-breaking Colbert Report and wish Stephen the very best."

While speaking to the New York Times about his upcoming gig, Colbert said that he won't be bringing his Colbert Report character to Late Night.

"I won't be doing the new show in character, so we'll all get to find out how much of him was me. I'm looking forward to it," he told Bill Carter.

The Emmy award-winning talk show host said he was "thrilled and grateful" that CBS chose him to fill in for Letterman. He will begin his Late Night run when Letterman retires from the broadcast in 2015.

[E! News] [NYT]