Beau Willimon talks Frank Underwood on 'The Colbert Report'

In case you were wondering how The Colbert Report appeared to live on in a recent episode of House of Cards months after TCR’s finale, show creator (an apparent Colbert Report fanboy) Beau Willimon explained how he got the two shows together:

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How did you swing The Colbert Report appearance in the premiere?

We simply asked! I’d had the pleasure of being on The Colbert Report and I think that Stephen is among the most talented people on the planet. We wanted to have an interesting way to get a sense of where the Underwood presidency was that wasn’t as obvious as simply a news anchor telling us, and we thought that would be more engaging, dramatic, and entertaining. I asked Stephen and thanked my lucky stars when he said yes. One of the things that we delighted in when we talked about it was that our fictional Colbert Report would exist beyond the real-life one. The Colbert Report never fully dies.

Full Interview: The Daily Beast.

Willmon also revealed that Stephen’s 2006 White House Correspondent’s dinner speech is a source of inspiration for his writers:

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The show’s writers like to re-watch a famous Stephen Colbert speech …

Inspiration for the series comes from many places besides presidential history.

The writers have made it a tradition to watch Stephen Colbert’s 2006 White House Correspondents Association dinner speech before getting started on each season.

Why? “There’s something dangerous in that speech,” Willimon explained.

In Colbert, “you had a guy that was saying some very funny things, but also some things that were too important to be funny, and saying it to a president’s face. Now, in terms of power, in terms of seizing a moment, in terms of leaving nothing on the table and taking off the kid gloves, that sort of energy, that sort of bravery, and also that certain ability of Stephen Colbert to not take himself too seriously when it comes to very serious matters — the balance of all that, I think, was just kind of like, a perfect moment. It’s great to look at some perfection when that’s what you strive for in your own endeavors.”

Full Article: KSPR and Mediate.