Big week for Colbert. He kicked it off with George Clooney – who had nothing to promote – on Tuesday and last night, while Fallon and The Tonight Show had Justin Timberlake and yet another History of Rap, Colbert’s big guest was Scarlett Johansson, who also has nothing to promote. Week 1 for late night is apparently all about calling in your friends. Scarjo evidently just wanted to be there for Stephen, flying in from Paris to New York just to do the interview.
Scarjo and Colbert have great chemistry, a good back and forth. She’s confident enough to sass him. And now that he’s being “himself” and not a character, he’s allowed to actually crush on his guests a little… not unlike the way Letterman used to, but on Stephen, at least not yet, it doesn’t approach the border of creepy. Instead, it feels earned. Right now, we still believe that if Stephen Colbert likes you, you must have impressed him. As Sarah noted yesterday though (click here for a refresher), he hasn’t yet had to interview a “network” must, the star of some procedural, when the grind of the everyday hour without the freedom of Comedy Central might wear.
Tonight Stephen’s with Joe Biden and Toby Keith. He just inducted Toby Keith into the Songwriters Hall of Fame this summer. If you missed that speech, click here to read the transcript. Their relationship is odd and hilarious.
