Andy Serkis stopped by The Late Show on Tuesday night to promote War for the Planet of the Apes, in which he stars as chimpanzee Caesar. Host Stephen Colbert had nothing but praise for Serkis, telling the actor that he corrects anyone who calls Serkis “an amazing motion-capture performer,” by pointing out “No, he’s a fantastic performer who is famous for doing motion-capture.” Colbert proved his point by airing a clip of Serkis in the film with the special effects stripped away, allowing Serkis’ face to be seen and his performance to be fully appreciated by anyone who doubts his talents.
Naturally, Colbert, a major Lord of the Rings fan, could not go a full minute without mentioning Serkis’ most famous mo-cap role, playing both Sméagol and Gollum in the Peter Jackson films. In fact, Colbert even asked Serkis to get back into character to read some Trump tweets—which Serkis did wholeheartedly, crouching in his chair. “What’s covfefe, precious?” Give the man an Oscar, already.
