The mother of all dragons crashed The Colbert Report last night. Literally.
It's not the first time a CGI character has appeared on a talk show, but it's one of the best. Smaug, the mighty dragon from Peter Jackson's trilogy based on The Hobbit, is probably the most memorable character in the series. So naturally, being an enormous fan of all things Middle-Earth, Stephen Colbert just had to have the big guy on his show. With Colbert ready to move to The Late Show next year, this provided one of the great final moments of his tenure on Comedy Central.
Weta Digital, Peter Jackson and "it" guy of the moment Benedict Cumberbatch came together to make Colbert's dream happen. And the results are epic.
Among other things, Smaug describes himself as a fiscal conservative who's fond of "hostile takeovers." He's also depicted as the villain in The Hobbit due to "typical liberal Hollywood bias."
Most of the humor comes from Smaug comparing his actions in The Hobbit to situations from recent headlines. When Colbert asks if it's true that Smaug tried to murder Bilbo Baggins, Smaug turns the tables and asks what Colbert would do "if someone broke into your home wearing a hoodie?"
He also claims to have eaten the ladies from The View. You can see Smaug in his proper cinematic form when The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies hits theaters on December 17.
