Stephen Colbert is headed to primetime—not as himself, but as Scotty Bristol, a fictional late-night talk show host in an upcoming episode of CBS’s quirky crime dramedy Elsbeth.
The casting was first reported by Josef Adalian at Vulture, who noted that filming took place this week in New York City. That timing suggests Colbert’s role was locked in well before he and CBS announced on July 17 that The Late Show would end its run next spring.
Colbert’s regular viewers may recall that the host actually floated the idea of appearing on Elsbeth during a February interview with cast member Wendell Pierce on The Late Show. “I’ve told CBS I want to be on that show,” Colbert said. Pierce playfully responded, “I can make that happen.”
Details about Colbert’s episode—including whether his character will be a suspect, a victim, or the murderer—are still under wraps, but Colbert did joke in his interview with Pierce that he’d love to play a corpse. In other words, Scotty Bristol might want to sleep with one eye open.
Though he’s best known for his work in late night, Colbert has a long list of acting credits to his name. In addition to his decade-long performance as a fictionalized conservative pundit on The Colbert Report, he’s appeared in Girls5eva, The Mindy Project, The Office, Law & Order, and of course, Strangers with Candy. He’s also voiced numerous animated characters in both film and television over the years.
Stay tuned—Colbert’s episode is expected to kick off Elsbeth’s second season on October 12.
