Did you spot Stephen Colbert in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug?
TV funnyman and J.R.R. Tolkien expert has been teasing his involvement with Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy since the fall of 2012. But as this sequel to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey readied for its theatrical debut he full on confessed on Late Show With David Letterman that he has a cameo in it. Dave was skeptical of this comedian who makes his living by making a fool out of politicians and celebrities, but it turns out Colbert and IMDB were right! He's been spotted, and dedicated Hobbit fans have recovered his cameo in GIF form.
Here it is, courtesy of Imgur:
In a running time of 161 minutes, this brief moment is easy to miss. After all, it's dark. Colbert is missing his signature glasses. His face is covered by an eye-patch, and hood, and disfigured with a goofy expression. Nonetheless, some of you spotted him! Here he plays a Laketown Spy. On Reddit, one user called royal_dump sets the scene:
"Okay, it's right as the dwarves are sneaking into Laketown. Bard's son stops them and says that there are spys [sic] watching the house. Shortly after it shows Bard and his Son walking alone and the camera pans to the right and shows Stephen looking at them and he turns his head and his eyepatch falls down. "
According to Colbert, he's not the only cameo in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. He told Letterman that writer-director Peter Jackson had invited Colbert and his family to New Zealand to hang out on set and play extras in Laketown, the home of Bard the Bowman. While Colbert got a moment as a featured extra, we don't know yet where his wife and two sons might be spotted aside from somewhere in the Laketown scenes. However, there is some suggestion that the kids who scamper away immediately after this moment are his. Sadly, the GIF doesn't extend that far. Also popping in for a cameo is Jackson himself, though his is far less subtle. It's at the start of the film, he is well-lit and gnashing on a large carrot as he exits a pub in the opening shot.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is now in theaters, and continue to win the box office battle for the third week in a row. Already, this ambitious sequel has earned $190 million in the U.S., and $614 million worldwide. Will it beat out The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey's $1 billion mark? In a few short months we'll know.
