Stephen Colbert addresses Louis C.K., Roy Moore sexual misconduct allegations

While Stephen Colbert's opening segment on The Late Show Thursday was largely focused on Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore and the molestation accusation against him, the host took a moment to address sexual misconduct claims against his former boss, Louis C.K.

"For those of you tuning in to see my interview with Louis C.K. tonight, I have some bad news — then I have some really bad news," Colbert told his audience. "Louis canceled his appearance here tonight because The New York Times broke this story today: Five women are accusing Louis C.K. of sexual misconduct. When reached for comment, Jesus said, ‘La la la la la, I don't want to hear about it, I was a big fan. La la la la la.'"

In the '90s, Louis C.K. served as head writer on The Dana Carvey Show, where Colbert landed a TV gig. Colbert called the recent claims against Louis C.K. — which include numerous instances of the comedian masturbating in front of woman — "disturbing" and "the latest in an avalanche of allegations against powerful and prominent men."

Louis C.K.'s publicist told EW, "In the coming days, Louis will issue a written statement."

As for Moore, who's been accused of initiating sexual contact with a 14-year-old teenager when he was 32 years old, he called the alleged act "so heinous that it defies my ability to describe it, but I'll try: illegal." (Colbert was mocking Moore's previous comments on homosexuality, in which he called same-sex intercourse "an act so heinous that it defies one's ability to describe it.")

Three other women also claimed Moore, then in his early 30s, pursued them when they were between the ages of 16 and 18. "My god, these accusations are so damning voters are either going to force him off the ballot or make him president," Colbert said — a reference to the numerous sexual assault and harassment allegations against President Donald Trump, who once bragged to Billy Bush about grabbing women "by the p—sy" in the now infamous Access Hollywood tapes.

Moore denied the claims in a statement to The Washington Post, which was first to report the news. "These allegations are completely false and are a desperate political attack by the National Democrat Party and The Washington Post on this campaign," he said, calling the allegations "garbage" and "the very definition of fake news." <iframe src="//media.mtvnservices.com/embed/mgid:arc:video:comedycentral.com:02044a5b-aa2c-4859-b186-be41057e1e41" width="512" height="288" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="" scrolling="no" resize="0" replace_attributes="1" name=""></iframe>

Elsewhere on the late-night circuit, Trevor Noah chimed in about Louis C.K. on The Daily Show during a segment about Facebook wanting users to upload nude photos so the platform can then block those same photos from getting uploaded again to social media.

"When I saw this story today, I was like, ‘Man, this is the most pervy story of the day,' and then Louis C.K. said, ‘Hold my penis,'" Noah said. "At this point, we're gonna need a new Oscar category this year: Best Actor Whose Movies We Can't Watch Anymore. And you know what? In fact, now that I think about it, all women in Hollywood should win double Oscars for acting like all the men were cool all along."

He added, "It's getting to the point where whenever I see a beloved celebrity's name trending on Twitter, I'm like, ‘Ah, please tell me they're dead. Please tell me they're dead. Please tell me they're dead.'"