Stephen Colbert has revealed his most 'distracting' crush on an A-list guest as he prepares to bid farewell to his talk show after 11 seasons. The married talk show icon, 62, whose show was canceled last year after a decade on air, reminisced about a time he was 'wildly attracted' to a much-younger star in 2019 and 'didn't know what to do with his eyeballs.'
Colbert's Confession on Strike Force Five
Appearing on the Strike Force Five podcast, Colbert was asked by host Jimmy Kimmel: 'Has there been a guest who was so attractive that you found it distracting?' Colbert admitted: 'I'll tell you who I did not expect to be wildly attracted to. Like, I didn't know what to do with myself. I did not know what to do with my eyeballs when Michelle Williams was on for the first time.' He added: 'She sat down across from me and I went, “F**k, what is wrong with my head? I'd better not look directly at her for this entire interview.”'
Colbert, who has been married to Evelyn McGee since 1993, heaped praise on the 45-year-old Dawson's Creek star's 'vibe' and 'face,' calling her 'so beautiful.' Five-time Oscar nominee Williams first crossed paths with Colbert on his show in April 2019 as she promoted the miniseries Fosse/Verdon. Her last encounter with the smitten host was in April 2025 to discuss the series Dying for Sex. Williams has been married to Thomas Kail—with whom she shares three children—since 2020. She also welcomed daughter Matilda, 21, with late ex Heath Ledger.
Other Distractions and the Show's End
Colbert also revealed he 'used to have a Rachel Weisz problem,' detailing how he would have to 'leave the building' when she was on the show for 'fear I would say something stupid.' Strike Force Five includes Colbert, Kimmel, Late Night host Seth Meyers, Last Week Tonight's John Oliver, and The Tonight Show's Jimmy Fallon. They formed in 2023 during a writers' strike, and the group reunited on Monday's episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
Colbert shockingly announced on July 17, 2025, that Paramount/CBS would not be renewing his contract after 11 years on the air, ending the late-night program after 44 years. At the time, the network claimed it was 'purely a financial decision,' but the cancellation came days after the devout Catholic called Paramount/CBS's $16 million lawsuit settlement with President Donald Trump 'a big fat bribe.' Paramount was also in the midst of a multibillion-dollar merger with the movie studio Skydance, which requires government approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
'I will tell you when I got knocked off the air for a few days. People canceled Disney+,' Kimmel noted. 'Why aren't you people canceling Paramount+? Because you didn't have it in the first place? [laughs].'
Final Shows and Tributes
Ahead of the taping, all four guests rolled up to the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City, and Fallon clutched two bottles of champagne in his hands. Former Late Show host David Letterman, Tom Hanks, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Pedro Pascal are among A-listers set to appear in its final days. The tributes have already rolled in as 51-year-old Fallon previously appeared as a guest on March 5 to belt out an over-the-top rendition of Frank Sinatra's 1969 song My Way. On October 14, Bette Midler serenaded Colbert with a special song to the melody of her hit Wind Beneath My Wings. John Lithgow performed a 'special poem' for the DC-born, South Carolina–raised comic titled 'The Mighty Colbert' on the March 9th episode. One line went, 'You stand for what's right with wit and class,' and was rhymed with 'You never kissed the orange a**'—a reference to Trump amid claims his administration played a part in Colbert's cancellation.
Luckily, Colbert secured a post-cancellation gig penning a new Lord of the Rings film for Warner Bros. with his 27-year-old son Peter McGee and Philippa Boyens, which was announced on Tolkien Reading Day, March 25. His final show will air on May 21.
