Nation, be advised you will not be able to unsee these pics of Stephen Colbert...
Making a cameo in the second The Hobbit movie may not have been enough for the Emmy-winning talk show host, because he's taken it a step further. And it's WELL played.
A week before the release of the upcoming third and final film, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, and before Colbert's Comedy Central show The Colbert Report ends its run ahead of his debut as the new host of CBS' The Late Show, Entertainment Weekly has released hilarious cover photos of him portraying three of your favorite Middle-earth characters.
In one pic, Colbert strikes a handsome pose as Legolas, the long, blond-haired elf played by Orlando Bloom.
He also channels hero and Hobbit Bilbo Baggins, who is played by Martin Freeman...
...and dons a long beard as the Wizard Gandalf, played by Ian McKellen.
The Hobbit is based on J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 book, the prequel to his trilogy The Lord of the Rings, whose latest three-part film adaptation, released by between 2001 and 2003, was also directed by Jackson.
Colbert had a blink-and-you-may-miss it role as the Laketown Spy in the 2013 movie The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
"I have never met a bigger Tolkien geek in my life," director Peter Jackson told Entertainment Weekly in 2012.
Colbert dressed up like his character again while hosting the Hobbit panel at San Diego Comic-Con this past summer.
"I just hope I fulfilled Professor Tolkien's vision," he said in a speech.
Moderated the Hobbit panel at #SDComicCon! Can't wait to see how Peter Jackson adapts it into a 14-hour trilogy.
? Stephen Colbert (@StephenAtHome) July 29, 2014The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is set for release on Dec. 17 and also stars returning actors Cate Blanchett and Evangeline Lilly as the elves Galadriel and Tauriel, Lee Pace as Thranduil the elvenking, Luke Evans as Bard the bowman, Richard Armitage as the dwarf Thorin Oakenshield and Benedict Cumberbatch, who provides the voice of Smaug the dragon.
The Colbert Report, which has won six Emmys since its 2005 debut, is set to end its run a day later.
Got sad about only having 9 shows left, so I switched to binary. Now I have 1001 shows left!
? Stephen Colbert (@StephenAtHome) December 4, 2014Colbert is expected to make his Late Show debut in 2015, replacing host David Letterman. The change, which comes amid the latter star's retirement, was announced in April.