Stephen Colbert has only been off The Late Show for a few months, and apparently the first order of post-late-night business is the same one David Letterman embraced after leaving the Ed Sullivan Theater: stop shaving. The good news is Colbert has not yet gone full mountain man.The former Late Show host popped up in a video shared by the Television Critics Association on Instagram to accept the show’s 2026 TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Variety, Talk or Sketch. He was sporting a noticeably grayer goatee, giving us our first real glimpse at Post-Late Show for the long-time comedian. You can see for yourself in the video embedded below.A post shared by Television Critics Association (@official_tca)A photo posted by on The Emmy-winning host used the acceptance speech to praise the staff that stuck with the show through its final season, which ended in May. He said he was proud of how focused everyone remained even though they knew they were “running straight into a brick wall at the end.” He closed with a pretty bittersweet little farewell to his old medium:And hey, give my best to TV. I miss it. A lot of fond memories.We miss you too, Stephen, but I’m sorry. I was also looking at the beard.The Comedy Central alum was famously clean-shaven throughout most of his Late Show tenure, so the new facial hair immediately reminded me of his predecessor. After David Letterman retired from The Late Show in May 2015, he stopped shaving and gradually developed one of television’s most spectacular retirement beards. What began as some harmless scruff eventually became a giant white beard that made Letterman look vaguely like Santa Claus had decided to start running marathons.Letterman knew exactly what he was doing, too. Months into retirement, he admitted his wife and son hated the beard and said other people seemed “off-put” by it, which only made him more determined to keep growing it. Colbert has a long way to go before reaching that level.(Image credit: CBS Broadcasting Inc)The veteran political satirist already had his own post-show beard once. When The Colbert Report ended in 2014, and he had several months before taking over The Late Show, he grew what he called the “Colbeard.” He eventually shaved it off in stages for a comedy video ahead of his CBS debut, including one truly cursed look he dubbed the “Half Wolverine.” So perhaps this is simply part of his process. Show ends, razor goes into storage.This time, though, there is no new late-night desk waiting for him. CBS announced the cancellation of The Late Show in 2025, and the Daily Show legend wrapped his run this past May after more than a decade behind Letterman’s old desk. The TCA also gave him its Career Achievement Award this year, recognizing a television career that spans The Daily Show, The Colbert Report and his CBS run. For now, Colbert’s facial hair is still relatively respectable, if maybe slightly shaggy.But Letterman’s facial hair journey started somewhere too. Check back in six months. If Colbert is bald, wearing sunglasses and hiding half his face behind a giant white beard, we’ll know the transformation is complete.