Stephen Colbert to play late-night TV host on CBS' 'Elsbeth'

Stephen Colbert will star as a late-night TV host on a forthcoming episode of the murder-a-week CBS procedural "Elsbeth," starring Carrie Preston.

Cue to the requisite quips about whether he'll play the murderer or murderee, or just how ironic this news is two weeks after CBS canceled "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," which will end its decadelong run next May.

In a nod to the irony, Vulture broke this casting news Friday by noting, "Colbert knows that working in TV can be murder." The entertainment website added that a number of other prominent New York-based stars have also appeared on the sophomore series, including Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Jane Krakowski, Retta and Laurie Metcalf.

Colbert will appear on "The Good Fight"/"Good Wife" spinoff as host of something called "Way Late with Scotty Bristol." Vulture also pointed out that during a February "Late Show" interview with "Elsbeth" co-star Wendell Pierce, Colbert said he'd like to play the role of "a corpse." 

With the "Elsbeth" cameo, Colbert continues a late-night tradition that goes back to at least Johnny Carson, who was in a pair of "Get Smart" episodes in the late 1960s, then decades later in "Newhart" and "Cheers" (a 1992 episode titled "Heeeeeere's ... Cliffy!"). He was also in an uncredited "Columbo" episode from 1975.

Since then, late-night hosts have been all over prime-time, often but not always as themselves, in roles of the blink-and-you'll-miss-'em variety — Jay Leno ("Home Improvement," "The West Wing," many more), David Letterman ("The Larry Sanders Show," "The Simpsons") and — yes — Colbert too.

In his before-he-was-famous years, Colbert scratched out guest roles on a handful of shows, but later appeared as the alter-ego Stephen Colbert of "The Colbert Report" in "House of Cards" (2015) and in the ninth and final season of "The Office" as "Broccoli Rob," a singing rival of Andy Bernard's (Ed Helms) who stole his a cappella "signature song."

Vulture said the "Elsbeth" episode — currently under production — is expected to air as the season 3 opener Oct. 12.