Typically, when a famous comedian ventures into writing, it’s in service of a book of humorous essays or a screenplay for a starring vehicle. Stephen Colbert, the comic actor turned beloved talkshow host, is preparing a more unusual pivot: he’ll be working on the screenplay for a new Lord of the Rings movie, to be produced by franchise impresario Peter Jackson, who directed the original trilogy of films based on the JRR Tolkien fantasy novels, as well as a trilogy based on Tolkien’s book The Hobbit. To casual viewers of his about-to-end Late Show on CBS, or those who remember his years as a contributor to Comedy Central’s irreverent The Daily Show, this might seem like an odd fit; Tolkien isn’t known for his satirical edge. Colbert, however, is known for his love of Tolkien – among other things.
Befitting his eventual gig as a political satirist, Colbert was born in Washington DC, the youngest of 11 children in a Catholic family that subsequently lived in Maryland and South Carolina. The family suffered a major loss in 1974 when two of Colbert’s brothers and their father were killed in a plane crash. Colbert was only 10 and became withdrawn after the tragedy, retreating into books – especially fantasy books like the works of Tolkien – and games like Dungeons & Dragons, which he played heavily for four years. This provided some early training in acting and improvisation without him entirely realizing it. “For somebody who eventually became an actor, it was interesting to have done that for so many years, because acting is role-playing,” he told the AV Club in 2006. “You assume a character, and you have to stay in them over years, and you create histories, and you apply your powers. It’s good improvisation with agreed rules before you go in.”
