Meet Stephen and Evelyn Colbert's Grown-Up Kids: Madeleine, Peter, and John
Meet Evelyn and Stephen Colbert’s kids—Madeleine, Peter, and John—the low-key trio behind the late-night legend. From rare public cameos to family traditions, here’s what to know about the Colbert children.
Stephen Colbert just wrapped up The Late Show on May 21, 2026, capping an 11-year run. On TV, he is (rightfully) a legend. Off camera, he is a dad who keeps things pretty locked down. He and his wife, Evelyn McGee-Colbert, have three kids — Madeleine, Peter, and John — and they mostly live outside the spotlight. Here is what is actually out there, without the fluff.
Madeleine Colbert
Born around 1995, Madeleine is the firstborn and, by all accounts, the steady presence in a very joke-heavy house. She went to Yale, then built a serious journalism career under the byline Madeleine Carlisle. She wrote for Time and The Atlantic, and later moved into television news as an associate producer at 60 Minutes. If you are keeping score at home: yes, that means one Colbert kid now works on one of TV's biggest news institutions. Neat little loop.
Stephen has talked about how sharp and empathetic she is, and there is one family story he has shared that kind of says it all. After John was born, there was a rough night at home where he lost his cool and raised his voice. Madeleine, still a kid herself, cut through it with one line that stopped him cold:
"My daughter said, 'Why are you yelling at us?' and I said, 'I'm trying to discipline you!' And then she looked up at me with her tear-stained eyes and said, 'This is how you teach children, by making them cry,'"
He told BuzzFeed that moment humbled him immediately.
Peter Colbert
Peter stays off the grid, which is very on-brand for this family. Stephen and Evelyn keep details about him private, and he does not pop up much publicly.
John Colbert
We do not get many John updates either. What we do know: that post-baby chaos Stephen has described — the night he yelled and Madeleine calmly checked him — happened right after John was born.
The bigger picture
As Colbert steps back from late night, the throughline is pretty clear: the guy who spent more than a decade in front of a camera has kept his kids far from it. When their names do surface, it is usually to underline who he is at home — a dad who is proud, a little sentimental, and, when needed, willing to get humbled by his own kid's one-liner.