Late night host Stephen Colbert has dismissed criticism from “Lord of the Rings” fans who are upset that he will be hosting the upcoming movie.
Colbert has addressed the cancellation of “The Late Show” in numerous interviews — most recently with The Hollywood Reporter — that have also highlighted the next steps in his career.
“If there’s a silver lining to Colbert’s unexpected ouster, it’s that he’s now able to get involved in writing an installment of the Lord of the Rings film franchise,” writes The Hollywood Reporter. “This project has been six years in the making and is a lifelong dream for the self-proclaimed super fan.”
STEPHEN COLBERT’S NEXT ACT AFTER THE END OF ‘BACKGAME’
Stephen Colbert accepts the award for Outstanding Talk Series for “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” during the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Peacock Theater at LA Live in Los Angeles on September 14, 2025. (Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images)
“You’ve announced your next act: a Lord of the Rings movie. Naturally, there’s a consensus in the mixed LOTR fan community: ‘Why is Stephen writing this? Just because he’s famous and a big fan?’ “The Hollywood Reporter interviewer asked. “Tell them why they should trust you.”
“I mean, there’s no reason,” Colbert said. “And there’s no point in me talking about that because all you can do is – I’m going to use the full term here – the artist follows your heart and the art you’ve learned to try to turn this into something that’s not fandom but drama.”
“And luckily I don’t have to do this alone,” he continued. “I have a very good Sherpa [co-writer and LOTR veteran] Philippa Boyens, who cares as much as I do. And I will just say that every moment has been a joy so far. “
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Ian McKellen appears as Gandalf in a scene from “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,” which stars Elijah Wood as Frodo and is based on JRR Tolkien’s book. (The New Line/WireImage/Getty Images)
Colbert first revealed in a video announcement in March that he will co-write the next “Lord of the Rings” movie after his show ends this month.
“You know what these books mean to me and what your movies mean to me, but what I found myself reading over and over again was the six chapters at the beginning of ‘Fellowship’ that didn’t develop into the first movie back in the day,” Colbert said. said in the video and Peter Jackson, director of the “Lord of the Rings” movies.
Colbert said the next film will be based on “Fog on the Barrow-downs,” the eighth chapter of “The Fellowship of the Ring,” the first book in the fictional trilogy from JRR Tolkien.
The series, written by Tolkien, a devout Catholic, became popular company with conservatives. Some on the left, including MS NOW anchor Rachel Maddow, even said the job was embraced by the “far right.”
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Owain Arthur and Sophia Nomvete appear in a scene from “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” (Amazon Studios via AP)
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Some fans argue that they have good reason to worry about the new “Lord of the Rings” content. Amazon’s “Rings of Power” series, which is very different from Jackson’s film adaptation, was widely criticized as a modern, liberal take on the classic books.
