Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the legendary actress and comedian, bids farewell to her long-time friend and colleague, Stephen Colbert, as he prepares to end his Late Show run. In an exclusive interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Louis-Dreyfus reflects on her final visit to Colbert's show, sharing insights into their friendship, the emotional goodbye, and her thoughts on Colbert's future endeavors.
A Friendship Like No Other
Louis-Dreyfus describes her friendship with Colbert as "easy" and "natural." She explains, "You know when you meet people and think, 'I feel like I’ve known this person my whole life'? That’s how I feel about him. Our paths have crossed a lot. I was a little bit ahead of him at Northwestern [University], and I was a little bit ahead of him in Chicago [at Second City]. But we know a lot of the same people and we just kind of align comedically and with a way of viewing the world. We have a shared set of values."
The Emotional Goodbye
The actress reveals that the final show was emotionally charged. She says, "I actually did. I went downstairs and I was with the writers beforehand, as we were going over the bit where he asks stars questions under the stars. We were going over the material. I came in early to rehearse it, and some jokes worked and some didn’t. So I came down to the writers room and we were trying new material, and Stephen introduced me to each person in the room. I was struck by the heaviness of this moment and I told them how much I appreciated what they were doing and the value that I believe this show brings to our culture, and of course they’re a part of that. So it’s definitely a great loss, and I felt it when I was in the innards of the show with those guys."
Roasting Colbert
When asked about roasting Colbert, Louis-Dreyfus mentions, "I had so much fun. I mean, the list was long. You can ask [Veep showrunner/writer] Dave Mandel. There were 11 jokes last night out of maybe 150 pitched. You’re familiar with the Veep process. We refer to them as alts. This was nothing but alts. Alts for days. So it was just figuring out which ones to use."
A Powerful Mirror
Louis-Dreyfus emphasizes the importance of Colbert's show in holding a mirror up to our democracy. She states, "Well, he holds a very powerful mirror up to our democracy. I believe that it’s the comedians who we rely on in these trying times. This is right out of the authoritarian playbook, so I’m deeply concerned as an artist. Period."
Looking Ahead
When asked about Colbert's future, Louis-Dreyfus expresses her excitement, saying, "His bright future is so bright. I can’t wait to see what he does. This man is so intelligent and has so much to offer, he’s just going to move onto bigger and better things. This I know for sure in my heart, and I can’t wait to witness it — and who knows, maybe even be a part of it. I just love him to death. He is a machine when it comes to creativity. He’s a creative machine and I just can’t wait to see what he does."
Collaboration and Celebration
Louis-Dreyfus concludes by mentioning her desire to collaborate with Colbert, stating, "Oh, I don’t know. I just like him. I just like working with him. I like being with him. I say that very off-handedly, but when you meet people you like in show business, it’s nice to keep them close. I’ve done that my whole life, and it’s worked out well. And I count Stephen and Evie as those people."
As for the celebration, Louis-Dreyfus reveals, "Sadly, I can’t be in New York next week, because I’m in Europe now. I almost didn’t make the plane because the show last night went super long. They had to cut it down. So I’m in Europe for the next two weeks, otherwise I’d be at the party to celebrate him."
New Projects
Finally, Louis-Dreyfus teases her upcoming Apple TV series, "Nanny Squatter," and her involvement in the animated feature "Tangles," produced by herself. She says, "It’s in development, so nothing to tease yet. But I am at Cannes right now to celebrate this movie Tangles that I’m in and produced. It’s an animated feature. I’m really excited about that."
