The Creators & Cast of 'The Book of Mormon' | Hormuz It Or Lose It

Summary

Podcast Summary

The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert
Episode: The Creators & Cast of 'The Book of Mormon' | Hormuz It Or Lose It
Date: March 17, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Late Show Pod Show is a vibrant celebration of the 15th anniversary of Broadway’s The Book of Mormon, featuring its acclaimed creators—Trey Parker, Matt Stone, and Robert Lopez—as well as original cast member Andrew Rannells. Host Stephen Colbert delivers his signature blend of topical humor and sharp interviews, covering everything from the most recent Oscars and ongoing world events (notably, the fictional “Trump’s war” in the Strait of Hormuz) to deep dives into the creative process, behind-the-scenes stories, and the legacy of The Book of Mormon. The episode also contains exciting news for fans: a reunion event with the original cast.

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Key Segments & Discussion Points

1. Opening Monologue: Satire, Oscars, & News (00:35–12:08)

• Oscars Recap: Colbert riffs on awards, making jokes about Paul Thomas Anderson’s fictional sweep for “One Battle After Another”, Michael B. Jordan’s dual role in “Sinners”, and Jessie Buckley’s historic win.
• World News Satire: Colbert dives into mock coverage of “Trump’s not-a-war to end all wars,” focusing on the fictional Strait of Hormuz crisis, rising oil prices, and U.S. political antics.
  • Notable satirical quote (05:22):

    "I would never harm a single drop of innocent young oil. I believe the oil is our future. Drill it well and let it kill a duck." — Stephen Colbert

• Spoof Political Commentary: Jokes abound about Trump, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the farcical logic behind the administration’s stances.
• Transitions to Broadway talk: (12:08)

  “Listen, we got a great show for you tonight. Coming up, the creators of Broadway's the Book of Mormon.”

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2. Interview: Creators of The Book of Mormon (13:02–24:29)

Meeting the Creators

• Introduction of Trey Parker, Matt Stone, and Robert Lopez, highlighting their decorated careers and creative chemistry.
• Musical Roots:
  • Trey: “A lot of country music and Elton John.” (14:00)
  • Matt: “Rush and the Police.” (14:08)
  • Robert: “Billy Joel and Stephen Sondheim.” (14:14)
• Early Songwriting: Parker recalls writing comedic songs as a teenager after being inspired by Spinal Tap.

  “One of my first songs was called ‘You’d Suck.’” (14:56)

The Origins of Collaboration

• First Meeting was sparked by mutual admiration between Team America creators and the team behind Avenue Q. Both feared the other was about to “steal their puppet idea.”
  • “We thought it was so cool. Like, this is this great idea...and then we just hung out.” — Matt Stone (16:40–17:06)
• Genesis of The Book of Mormon: Both teams independently fantasized about writing a Joseph Smith musical.

  “The Joseph Smith story will make a great musical. And it's like, it won't make a great musical, but that was the original.” — Trey Parker (17:37)

Letters from Sondheim & Creative Validation

• Trey Parker recounts receiving supportive, personal letters from Stephen Sondheim, including a job offer to co-write a musical.
  • “At the end of it, he says, would you ever be interested in writing a stage musical with an old traditionalist, namely me?” — Stephen Colbert (18:31)
  • “By the way. And actually that was the second one. He wrote me after the South Park movie and said, that's the greatest musical I've seen in a long, long time.” — Trey Parker (18:46)

Pushing Boundaries: Audience Reactions

• Discussion of riskier elements in the show, notably the infamous Act One number “Hasa Diga Eebowai.”
  • “It means you, God, in the mouth.” — Robert Lopez (20:29)
• The creators recount the memorable walkout of a single audience member—who tried, and failed, to lead a mass exodus.

  “One lady just looked around at everyone, took her playbill, and threw it down. Was like, 'Come on, everybody, let's go.' And nobody followed her.” — Trey Parker (21:00)

Casting the Original Leads

• Josh Gad: Chosen based on another performer’s tape but kept after his audition impressed.
• Andrew Rannells: To join shortly and sing “I Believe.”

Writing “I Believe”

• Inspiration came late in the process; the team drew on beloved musical theater traditions, specifically The Sound of Music.
  • “Bobby brought up Sound of Music, and...we're like, well, let's just make it a warlord who shoots people in the face. What's so worrisome about that?” — Trey Parker (22:39–22:47)

Mormon Church’s Reaction

• The team was not concerned about official backlash, and recounts how the Church responded openly yet pointedly.
  • “They actually took out an ad in the Playbill...It was super nice. It was like, hey, you've seen the musical, now read the book.” — Trey Parker (23:25)

Anniversary Announcement: Mormon Magical Mystery Week

• Special Event Reveal:
  • “After the Tony Awards this year... we're doing something called Mormon Magical Mormon Mystery Week. And...a lot of the old cast, the original cast, is gonna come back and do...But you won't know who you're getting that night.” — Robert Lopez (23:54)
  • “I'm actually gonna play Joseph Smith and Jesus, that's gonna be in it too.” — Trey Parker (24:15)

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3. Interview: Andrew Rannells (25:15–32:10)

Backstage Stories

• Rannells recalls his Tony performance, the origin of Colbert as his Tony Awards presenter (after Mitt Romney declined), and Hugh Jackman offering support backstage.
  • “He hugged me, like, held me like a little baby...and he said, you're gonna do great.” — Andrew Rannells (27:04)

Casting & Rehearsal Process

• Rannells describes an unusually lavish audition process (including a trip to LA), his first meeting with Josh Gad, and a competitive atmosphere (Nick Lachey was among the contenders).
• Performing in the original Broadway cast entailed daily script changes and extreme adaptability.
  • “Fear. I was in constant fear...if I don't do this correctly, they're going to fire me.” — Andrew Rannells (30:55)
  • On changing lyrics live: “We wrote these new lyrics. And he was like, can you do it tonight? And I said, okay. And I just did it.” (31:17)

The Show’s Surprising Audience

• The creators expected a niche audience, never imagining the show would tour in Salt Lake City.
  • “I certainly never thought the show would be on tour in Salt Lake City. Like, that's pretty insane....I think it killed.” — Andrew Rannells (31:47)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You ever just call up Rita Moreno and taunt her?” — Stephen Colbert, on Robert Lopez’s double EGOT status (13:29)
• “Trey’s dream: to play Joseph Smith. He belongs on Broadway.” — Matt Stone (24:22–24:25)
• “There are filthy people everywhere, Stephen.” — Andrew Rannells, on the show’s broad appeal (32:02)
• “He's polite, but he's also kind of a dick. But, like, it's very smiley, so people are like, oh, he must be nice. But then there's, like, an edge underneath it.” — Andrew Rannells, describing Elder Price (29:47)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |:-------------:|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:35–12:08 | Stephen Colbert’s monologue: Oscars, Strait of Hormuz jokes, political satire | | 13:02–24:29 | Interview with The Book of Mormon creators Parker, Stone, Lopez | | 18:31 | Sondheim’s letter to Trey Parker | | 20:16 | Discussion of “Hasa Diga Eebowai” and audience reactions | | 21:00 | The dramatic walkout anecdote | | 22:14 | Writing “I Believe” | | 23:54 | Announcement: Magical Mormon Mystery Week reunion | | 25:15–32:10 | Andrew Rannells interview: Tony Awards stories, casting origin, new lyrics in rehearsal | | 27:04 | Hugh Jackman’s iconic backstage hug | | 29:47 | Breakdown of Elder Price’s character | | 30:55 | Rannells on the chaos and fear of ever-changing lyrics | | 32:02 | Rannells on the surprising popularity of the show in Utah |

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Episode Tone and Style

The episode features Colbert’s trademark satirical and irreverent humor, energetic banter with brilliant comedic minds, and a deep affection for both Broadway and topical comedy. The language is clever, fast-paced, and laced with absurdist asides—true to The Late Show’s distinctive style. The interviews blend genuine nostalgia, inside jokes, openness about the creative process, and playful mockery of showbiz traditions.

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Summary for New Listeners

This episode is a must-listen for fans of musical theater, comedy, and creative storytelling. You’ll gain behind-the-scenes insight into the making of The Book of Mormon, hear firsthand how its creators approach comedy and controversy, and enjoy laughter-packed anecdotes about Broadway life. The announcement of a 15th-anniversary special event with original cast members is the cherry on top. Even if you’re new to The Book of Mormon or The Late Show, the warmth and wit of these conversations will both enlighten and entertain.

Transcript

[Stephen Colbert]

Hey, Sal. Hank, what's going on? We haven't worked a case in years. I just bought my car at Carvana and it was so easy.

[Trey Parker]

Too easy.

[Stephen Colbert]

Think something's up? You tell me. They got thousands of options, found a great car at a great price, and it got delivered the next day. It sounds like Carvana just makes it easy to buy your car, Hank. Yeah, you're right. Case closed.

[Andrew Rannells]

Buy your car today on Carvana.

[Trey Parker]

Delivery fees may apply.

[Stephen Colbert]

Welcome to the Late show. I'm your host, Stephen Colbert. Folks, you know what? Yeah.

[Trey Parker]

What the.

[Stephen Colbert]

What the heck? I'm gonna start tonight with something fun and light. I. I know we usually start by talking about the stuff that we all worry about and not to worry. The worry's coming. But first, last night was the Oscars. Our friend Conan o' Brien was just as sexy as ever, However you rank him sexually. It was a big night for director Paul Thomas Anderson, who took home best director, best adapted screenplay, and best picture. All of those. All those awards for one battle after another, which I believe is the dramatic portrayal of a man trust Trying to cancel his Disney Hulu Bundle. Impossible. It's a quagmire. It's a quagmire. Another big winner was Michael B. Jordan, who got best actor for his incredible performance of two parts in the movie Sinners. I'm starting to think this guy could be the Michael Jordan of acting. That's how good he is. So many friends of this show. One big Ryan Coogler for best original screenplay and Jessie Buckley, who won best actress for her role in Hamnet. She is the first Irish woman to win the category and she shouted out her family.

[Andrew Rannells]

My family. My Irish family. They're all here. Ireland bought them flights.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, Ireland bought them flights. It was very nice of Ireland to do that, obviously. I'm guessing aer lingus. You know their slogan, Aer lingus. Come on, it's her birthday. She did it for yours and back. I don't know what that means. I have no idea what that joke means, if anybody asks. Now, back in Ireland, Jessie Buckley's family celebrated her win from their century old family pub. That is truly heartwarming. Usually to make Irish people that happy, you have to tell them that Prince Andrew got arrested. There was Irish people here. A lot of people. There was one unexpected twist when this happened in the live action short film category. And the Oscar goes to.

[Andrew Rannells]

It's a tie. I'm not joking. I'm going to name one winner this.

[Stephen Colbert]

They'll come up, accept their award and

[Andrew Rannells]

then I'll come back and name another

[Stephen Colbert]

winner, and then they'll accept their award. Okay. That was so nice of Kumail Nanjani. It's so much more civilized than the last time there was a tie in 1969, when the Academy made Katharine Hepburn and Barbra Streisand jump for it. I would not go up against Katharine Hepburn. Throw those elbows now. Okay, remember when I said the worry part would come later? We're here because we are. Hey, man, I don't make the news. I just make jokes about it. Because we are now in. This is three. We're in week three of Donald Trump's not a war to end all wars. The military has done everything he's asked of them. They're very good at their jobs. But there's a limit to air power. So after 17 days, the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked. Which brings us to tonight's edition of Hormuz News. You can use. Nothing can get throughs. When will it end? No clues. With the strait blocked, oil prices have risen more than 40% since the start of the war. And in the U.S. gasoline prices have jumped more than 65 cents per gallon. It's so bad that we here in New York, on the pump, on the handles, they're now labeled 87, 89. And hey, we got a freaking billionaire over here. That's my impression. Trump is clearly. Trump is clearly frustrated with all this. On Friday, he ordered strikes against Iran's main oil port, Kharg island, which. Which is also the pirate version of Love Island. ARR. I'm here to find true Karg. Sex marks the spot. Shiver me herpes again. I don't know what that means. I don't know what any of that means. Shortly after the attack, Trump announced on social media that the US had totally obliterated every military target in Iran's crown jewel, Cog Island. For reasons of decency, I have chosen not to wipe out the oil infrastructure on the island. Yes. I would never harm a single drop of innocent young oil. I believe the oil is our future. Drill it well and let it kill a duck. The decency, I don't know. Let it kill a duck. Let it. Let it. Let it kill. Let it kill a duck. The decency did not last long because Trump later told reporters that he may order more strikes on Carg island just for fun. Well, sure. I mean, in the famous words of J. Ropp and Oppenheimer, now I am become death.

[Robert Lopez]

Whee.

[Stephen Colbert]

On Friday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told us there's no Problem with Iran blocking the Strait of Hormuz. Except. Except for one problem.

[Andrew Rannells]

The only thing prohibiting transit in the straits right now is Iran shooting at shipping. It is open for transit should Iran not do that.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes.

[Andrew Rannells]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

That is ironclad logic. Good news, Ms. Nichols. Your husband's surgery went perfectly. He should be ready to take home as soon as he's done at the crematorium. Hegseth also got mad that the media has been accurately reporting what's happening.

[Andrew Rannells]

Another example of a fake headline that I saw yesterday. War widening. Here's a real headline for you. For an actual patriotic press. How about Iran shrinking going underground.

[Stephen Colbert]

And here's another fake headline. Secretary Hegseth visibly agitated, comma, alcohol on breath. Here's a real one. Here's a real one for a patriotic press. Secretary Hegseth named Diamond member of TGI Friday's Tequila honors program. Okay, it's the same story.

[Matt Stone]

Okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

You got a problem, bro? You got a problem,

[Trey Parker]

Pete?

[Stephen Colbert]

If there's no worries about the strait, how come Trump posted this on Saturday? Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and others that are affected by this artificial constraint will send ships to the area so that the Hormuz Strait threat by a nation that has been totally decapitated. I wish him lots of luck with that. Trump turns all of our allies against us, and now he's begging their help. It's like that classic children's book, the Boy who cried you everybody then kicked a wolf. The President was eager to claim that several helping secure the strait, but declined to name any of them. So many countries are helping. Nambia, Karkalarca, East Prambula, both Hakuna and the Democratic Republic of Matata are on board. What a wonderful place. Trump complained about our allies today at the Trump Kennedy crypto.com center. But then he seemed to forget one of his signature campaign promises. Drill, baby, drill. It always bothered me that we have these countries. Japan gets 95% of its from the straits, the homeless straits. And it always bothered me that we're protecting and we don't need them. We didn't need them before we started. Dig we must. Dig me must. That's the Trump policy of lots of oil, Is it? Dig we must or brain be broke. But of course, I don't know. I'd like to know. But we don't know. But of course, of course. Everything Trump says has to be right. So get ready for his updated slogans. Dig we must build the walk and mork America. Mindy again. Now Trump's latest war. Trump's latest war is unpopular with our allies. But he claims he's gotten a lot of support from one surprising source. I've spoken to a certain president who I like, actually a past president, former president. He said, I wish I did it. I wish I did. But they didn't do it. I'm doing it.

[Robert Lopez]

Yeah. Which president?

[Stephen Colbert]

Which president? I can't tell you that. I can't. No, I can't. I can't tell you. I can't tell you. But he's very real. He's as real as this table. His name is President table. One way you can tell this is frustrating the administration is that they've started to leak some hot goss about new supreme leader Mujtaba Khamenei, seen here remembering that time he called his teacher mom. According to US Intelligence, the elder Khamenei was wary of his son ever taking power because he was perceived as not. In fact, they wanted to place him in kind of a really easy job. As depicted in the Iranian hit film Mujtapa Blart. Mal Ayatollah. That joke should not work. It's like such a long walk. It should not. It's a mystery why that joke works. Then last week, Trump was briefed that Moshtab Khamenei is probably gay. And reportedly, when he was informed of this detail, Trump couldn't contain his surprise and laughed out loud.

[Andrew Rannells]

Ha ha.

[Stephen Colbert]

He's gay. Why doesn't he do straight guy stuff like constantly dancing to ymca? Listen, we got a great show. We got a great show for you tonight. Coming up, the creators of Broadway's the Book of Mormon. Folks, 15 years ago, my first guest debuted their new musical, the Book of Mormon. They won nine Tony Awards and changed Broadway. Please welcome to the Late Show, Robert Lopez, Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Look at that. We got off a special couch thing and everything. That's nice. Hey, fellas, thanks for being here.

[Trey Parker]

Thank you.

[Matt Stone]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, listen, Trey and Matt, everybody knows you guys are the Emmy and Peabody award winning creators of.

[Trey Parker]

Bobby.

[Stephen Colbert]

You co created the hit musical Avenue Q and also co wrote a song that parents have heard many times. Let it go

[Robert Lopez]

with my wife who's in the audience.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, wonderful. And you're also the only two time EGOT winner. So two Emmys, two Grammys, two Oscars, two Tonys. You ever just call up Rita Moreno and taunt her? Okay. And together you made 15 years ago a show that, as I said, won nine Tonys. And. But before all that success, what, what was the music you were Listening to growing up. Trey, what were you listening to growing up?

[Trey Parker]

A lot of country music and Elton John.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, there you go. Matt, what were. Matt, were you. What were you listening to?

[Matt Stone]

Rush and the Police.

[Stephen Colbert]

And Bobby.

[Robert Lopez]

Billy Joel and Stephen Sondheim.

[Stephen Colbert]

There you go. Now it's coming into focus.

[Robert Lopez]

And I saw you in Company, by the way.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Back in the day. Back in 2011. Thanks. That was a great, great experience. Okay, what were your first. Now, Matt, did you write music when you were younger?

[Matt Stone]

No, I didn't. I was just lucky enough to know these two guys who did okay growing up.

[Stephen Colbert]

So what kind of music did you guys do growing up? Did you write? I actually.

[Trey Parker]

Yeah, I started writing music, actually, after I saw Spinal Tap for the first time, because I just. I think I was like. I was like 12 or 13 when that came out, and I was just like, funny songs. I want to write funny songs. And I started just. That became my thing was. I was the funny song guy.

[Stephen Colbert]

What were some early.

[Trey Parker]

One of my first songs was called you'd Suck. And it was actually. I played it at a talent show at school.

[Matt Stone]

How old are you?

[Trey Parker]

And I was. I think I was in ninth grade. And the school called me. They were going to. And they said, you know, you said, you can't say that. And they said, you know, you're in big trouble. We've called your dad in. And I was like, oh, you called my dad? And my dad, who's basically Randy on South park, you know, my dad goes. He goes, you're gonna expel my son for being talented?

[Stephen Colbert]

Bobby. Early, early forays.

[Robert Lopez]

I had a piano teacher that made me write songs. And when I was six years old, I wrote a song called Oy Vey what a Day, which makes sense. Being Filipino and Irish,

[Stephen Colbert]

you guys were a creative team starting in college. And here we got a picture of you guys all working together. Here are you guys. I don't know why I'm holding up a picture of the three of you together when you're sitting right there, but I am.

[Robert Lopez]

Yup.

[Stephen Colbert]

How did you guys meet him?

[Matt Stone]

We were doing a movie. Trey and I were doing a movie called Team America.

[Stephen Colbert]

I remember well.

[Matt Stone]

And it had puppets in it. And we were. So. We were. Before we did it, we were working on it, and we were so sure that, like, this was such a great idea, like a puppet movie. Like, everyone's gonna wanna do this. And so our producer told us that, like, hey, there's a puppet show on Broadway. And we thought, oh, my God, somebody's got our idea. You know, they're doing the marionette thing. And so it was Avenue Q. And so Trey and I went to Avenue Q one night. And it's not marionettes. It's more of a Sesame street kind of.

[Robert Lopez]

But we were just as paranoid that someone was going to steal our idea.

[Matt Stone]

We thought it was so cool. Like, this is this great idea. And we went and we just loved it. We loved it. And then we were.

[Trey Parker]

And we were looking at the playbill. And the playbill.

[Andrew Rannells]

I looked.

[Trey Parker]

We looked on the back like, hey. They thanked us. And it was a special thanks to me and Matt. We had never met them or anything. And we were just like.

[Robert Lopez]

Because there would be no Avenue Q without you guys. I mean, it was definitely written as a result of us seeing South Park.

[Matt Stone]

Yeah. So it was. So we met. We met after. We met after the show. It really was like one of those things where we just. And then you just hung out. We just hung out. And then I think we were older, and Bobby's younger. And so Bobby was asking the respectful thing you do of older gentlemen where you say, what should I do with my career next? And I think we said something like, well, what do you want to do? He said, a musical about Joseph Smith. And we were like, no way. We wanted to do that for, like, 10 years.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's true.

[Matt Stone]

That's a true story.

[Stephen Colbert]

Honest to God. You guys both wanted to do something. The founder of Mormon.

[Trey Parker]

We would always put Mormon stuff in our stuff, but we always talked about that. A Mormon musical. And what we were all talking about at the time were like, the Joseph Smith story will make a great musical. And it's like, it won't make a great musical, but. And we had to, like, take it a lot further than that. But that was the original.

[Matt Stone]

So at that point, nobody else was thinking this, but we thought everyone was thinking this.

[Stephen Colbert]

You know what I mean?

[Matt Stone]

And then we met him and we just started writing it.

[Stephen Colbert]

We have to take a quick break.

[Andrew Rannells]

More with the creators of the Book

[Stephen Colbert]

of Mormon after this. Creators of the Book of Mormon, Matt Stone, Trey Parker and Robert Lopez. Well, I want to know, especially. Especially from you. Were you jealous to find out that in 2005, Trey, you got this. What a wonderful letter. You have a letter here from Stephen Sondheim.

[Matt Stone]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

At the end of it, he says, would you ever be interested in writing a stage musical with an old traditionalist, namely me? Did you know. Did you know what a. No. What an extraordinary thing this was to.

[Matt Stone]

Trey has that up in his office.

[Trey Parker]

By the way. And actually that was the second one. He wrote me a letter and he, same way, typed it up himself. And he wrote me after the south park movie and said, that's the greatest musical I've seen in a long, long time.

[Stephen Colbert]

Team.

[Trey Parker]

No, South Park. South Park.

[Stephen Colbert]

Bigger, longer.

[Trey Parker]

And then he wrote that one as a second one because I don't know if I responded to the first one.

[Stephen Colbert]

You didn't write him back.

[Matt Stone]

You didn't have a typewriter. Like 28. You didn't have a typewriter.

[Trey Parker]

Yeah, exactly.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay. But you mirrored doing that and said, no, I'd rather write this Mormon musical.

[Trey Parker]

Well, I mean, then we met, we did this whole thing, and then the next time I actually saw him, we were doing one of the workshops for Book of Mormon and we're watching it up and I'm sitting next to this guy and I'm like, that's Stephen Sondheim sitting right next to me. And he was laughing so hard. He was so supportive the whole time. He was amazing.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, reviewers have called the Book of Mormon more foul mouthed than a David Mamet on a blue streak. A non stop fusillade of obscenities. What's the moment in the show when you were first showing it to people? When you knew, like, this is the moment in the show that people would either love it or hate it because you had to know that you were gonna challenge the border of that.

[Trey Parker]

It's just what we do, though.

[Matt Stone]

Yeah.

[Robert Lopez]

I think.

[Stephen Colbert]

Is there one moment in that it's like, oh, this is the tipping point for people.

[Robert Lopez]

Well, the one in act one is hasidiga iboi. It's sort of our hakuna matata. When the boys get to Africa and they meet the villagers and they hear

[Trey Parker]

their saying, and what does it mean?

[Robert Lopez]

It means you, God in the mouth

[Stephen Colbert]

of, okay, have fun with that.

[Matt Stone]

Have fun with that.

[Stephen Colbert]

And the first live audience that saw that, what was the reaction? Were you?

[Matt Stone]

Well, I mean, theater is cool. I mean, Trey and I hadn't had as much experience as Bobby, but you got to put these workshops up and see people respond to it, you know what I mean? Over and over before you get to Broadway. And people liked it. That's what kept us going. It was cool.

[Stephen Colbert]

No one ever walked out.

[Matt Stone]

We had one lady. Yeah, we had one lady walk out. We still remember her.

[Trey Parker]

She did it very dramatically. She had her play. We were all standing back watching, and one lady just looked around at everyone, took her playbill and threw it down. Was like, come on, everybody, let's Go. And nobody followed her. So it was like,

[Stephen Colbert]

The musical is meaningless. It's just a thing on paper without a great cast. How did you find Josh Gad and Andrew Annells?

[Robert Lopez]

Josh Gad was in it from the beginning. He was in the very first reading, and I cast him off of a list of names. And I was just going through the names.

[Stephen Colbert]

Just names?

[Robert Lopez]

Just like, the names? No, no, no. So the casting director gave me a list, and I was like, who's Josh Gad? And she said, oh, he's from Spelling Bee. So I got a tape of Spelling Bee. It was like the Christmas cd. And I was listening. It was the whole cast. And I assumed that it was this one guy. And I was like, he's great. So we cast Josh. And then I realized, oh, it was a different guy. But this works too.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, Andrew's gonna be out here in just a minute. He's gonna sing I Believe Tonight, which is a fantastic song. What do y' all remember about writing I Believe?

[Trey Parker]

I remember it being one of the last things we wrote. We were still working on other pieces, but it was a part where we actually didn't even have a song. And we were like, you know, someone was telling us, like, there's gotta be a song here. And we basically were like, I don't know. I don't know.

[Matt Stone]

And then we.

[Trey Parker]

We went across the street and wrote it. And Bobby brought up Sound of Music, and. And, you know, we're like. And Bobby goes, remember the beginning of Sound of Music?

[Stephen Colbert]

And it's like this.

[Trey Parker]

And I was like, oh, yeah, let's just do that. You know, she said. Cause what does she say? What's so worrisome about that?

[Robert Lopez]

The captain with seven children. What's so fearsome about that?

[Trey Parker]

Yeah. So we're like, well, let's just make it a warlord who shoots people in the face. What's so worrisome about that? So we just copied him.

[Stephen Colbert]

Were you guys nervous at all about how the Mormon Church would feel?

[Matt Stone]

No, no, no.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, let me try that again. Let me try that again. Did any. Was anyone nervous?

[Matt Stone]

Everybody but me and Trey. We just. Me and Trey were like, we got this.

[Trey Parker]

That's cool.

[Matt Stone]

We got this. We know these people. We're from Colorado. Like, we know these people. We got it.

[Andrew Rannells]

What?

[Stephen Colbert]

Was there an official reaction?

[Trey Parker]

Yeah, they were odd. They were super. You know, they did what Mormons do. They're super nice about it.

[Matt Stone]

They kill you with kindness, and then they kill you with kindness.

[Trey Parker]

They actually took out an ad in the Playbill after We had opened, it was really big and the ad wasn't. It was super nice. It was like, hey, you've seen the musical, now read the book.

[Matt Stone]

Yeah, I think, I think there's more moments. I think there's more moments in it.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, so how are you guys celebrating

[Trey Parker]

15 years going on the Colbert show, man.

[Andrew Rannells]

What are you doing?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, we're honored and it's our honor and we're so happy that you did. But I understand that you have an announcement.

[Robert Lopez]

Yeah. After the Tony Awards this year from like June 9th to 14th, we're doing something called Mormon Magical Mormon Mystery Week. And we're gonna have. So Andrew Rannells, Josh Gad, Nikki James, the whole like a lot of the

[Trey Parker]

old cat, the original cast is gonna come back and do.

[Robert Lopez]

But you won't know who you're getting that night.

[Trey Parker]

Yeah, you won't know who you're getting that night. And I'm actually gonna play Joseph Smith and Jesus, that's gonna be in it too.

[Matt Stone]

Honestly, that's Trey's dream, to play Joseph Smith. This is finally.

[Stephen Colbert]

He belongs on Broadway.

[Robert Lopez]

You might have that sense.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, fellas, thanks so much for being here.

[Andrew Rannells]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Congratulations on 15 years. Thank you very much.

[Andrew Rannells]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

The Book of Mormon is celebrating 15 with Magical Mormon Week at the Eugene O' Neill Theater, June 9th to 14th. Coming up, Andrew Ranums. Welcome back, everybody. Ladies and gentlemen, my next guest is a Grammy award winning and Tony nominated actor. You know, from Girls, falsettos and the Book of Mormon. Please welcome back to the late show, Andrew Rannells. Nice to see you.

[Andrew Rannells]

It's great to see you. I just love you. I'm so happy to be here.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, that's so lovely to say. Thrilled to be back. Nice to see you back here. Now here's the thing. What do you got? I had the distinct honor in 15 years ago, 2011 at the Tonys to introduce you. You did came out and sang in front of the Tony audience. I just recently, and I mean today found out that I was not the first choice.

[Andrew Rannells]

Okay, okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

I was wondering why I got called like two days before the Tony's, like, oh, that'd be great. I'd love to. They must love me.

[Andrew Rannells]

We do love.

[Stephen Colbert]

You did do love.

[Andrew Rannells]

Yes. And we did. But we did because, you know, it was the Book of Mormon and it was, you know, going to be an election year. We thought, wouldn't it be fun if we asked Mitt Romney to introduce him?

[Stephen Colbert]

Which I think is actually a perfect choice.

[Andrew Rannells]

Right. And he said, sure. And then.

[Stephen Colbert]

Cause That's.

[Andrew Rannells]

He didn't know what the show was.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes.

[Andrew Rannells]

And then he found out, or someone told him what the show was, and then he said no. And then you came.

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you know what I suspect actually happened?

[Matt Stone]

What happened?

[Stephen Colbert]

I bet he knew what the show was. Cause he's not dumb, and it's called the Book of Mormon. And I thought he was like, oh, that'll be fun.

[Andrew Rannells]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

And then other people went, you can't do that. You can't do that.

[Andrew Rannells]

But he might have had a deal

[Stephen Colbert]

because he's actually kind of fun. We did a bit with him once, and it was surprisingly a lot of fun.

[Andrew Rannells]

But you were an upgrade, let's be honest.

[Stephen Colbert]

And you were as.

[Andrew Rannells]

I. What I remember about that night, I remember, well, two real big things. You, obviously, you were so kind, and I didn't get to see you before, but then I got to see you afterwards, and we went to the party and you took a picture with me, and that was really sweet. But as I was getting ready to go on, I was getting my microphone on, and next to me was Hugh Jackman getting his microphone on.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's good.

[Andrew Rannells]

And he had just seen the show, and he said, are you nervous? Cause I was about to sing and I said, I am nervous. And he said, come here. And he hugged me, like, held me like a little baby, and he rocked me back and forth. And he said, you're gonna do great.

[Stephen Colbert]

He does that to me every time he's here.

[Andrew Rannells]

I keep hearing that he just gives that out to people. Exactly.

[Stephen Colbert]

He's a hug slut. Now, you heard it here. You originated the role of Elder Price. As I said, how'd you get the part? Like, walk me through the process. I'd love to hear how people got cast.

[Andrew Rannells]

Yeah, it was a very normal audition process, honestly. I went in and I sang. No one could read the scre. No one had, like, anything from the show. It was all a big secret. So I went in and I sang my own stuff. And then I, you know, cold read a scene, and then they said, okay, you can come back and read again. So I read again. And then I got a phone call that they were like, they want to fly you out to Los Angeles, which never happens for Broadway shows because they, like, won't even give you subway fare. But these people were like, we'll fly you out to la. You'll meet with Trey and Matt and Bobby, and you'll read with this guy named Josh Gad. So I fly to la, and I was like, this is such a Long shot that I'm gonna get this job. And I showed up at the audition, and I'm dressed like a Mormon, like an idiot, like, kind of like tonight. And I had my little short sleeves on. And there were two other actors in the waiting room who were also dressed like Mormons. And one of them was Nick Lachey from 98 Degrees. And I was like, they're gonna cast 98 degrees. Like, they're just. He's famous, and, like, who am I? So I just went in, and I was like, well, it. Like, it's not gonna be my job, so I'm just gonna have fun with it. And Josh and I just kind of weirdly hit it off, and I realized that I was never going to out Josh him. Like, I just sort of stood very still while he ran around me and got very sweaty, and I just stood there and, like, reacted to him, and that was it. Yeah. And then I got a phone call that. That you're gonna do this show.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, there it is. You're gonna do a piece in just a little while.

[Andrew Rannells]

Here I am.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're gonna sing, I believe. And as Elder Price, how would you describe Elder Price's character? What do we need to know about him?

[Andrew Rannells]

Well, I think he's great. I think there's.

[Stephen Colbert]

How much of you is there?

[Andrew Rannells]

A lot.

[Stephen Colbert]

There's a lot behind this character.

[Andrew Rannells]

I think that there is a sort of. Of Midwestern. I'm from Nebraska. There's, like, a Midwestern cornfeh. Nice quality to him.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, I see.

[Andrew Rannells]

Meaning, like, he's polite, but he's also kind of a dick. But, like, it's very smiley, so people are like, oh, he must be nice. But then there's, like, an edge underneath it. And. Yeah, I think I brought that to that role.

[Stephen Colbert]

Not your first Broadway show, though. No. You went into Hairspray and Jersey Boys.

[Andrew Rannells]

Correct.

[Stephen Colbert]

Not in the original cast. Like that. This is your first time being in an original production. In the original cast. How is that different for a performer?

[Andrew Rannells]

Well, it's very different because they're writing it. Everything is changing as you're rehearsing it. So Trey and Matt and Bobby would come in with new pages every day, and the show was constantly changing. And even when we got into rehearsals, the show. I mean, into performances, into previews, the show was changing pretty drastically every night. And that was. It was an amazing thing to watch those three guys work, because even if something worked and was. Was super funny, but they knew they could beat it. They would beat it. They were like, nah, we can Beat that joke. We got something better.

[Stephen Colbert]

But what does that do to you as a performer if the lyrics are changing every night? Because people always go like, how do you remember all those words? But then you have to forget words and remember new words.

[Andrew Rannells]

Fear. I was in constant fear. It's a great effort of losing my job. I was like, if I don't do this correctly, they're going to fire me. So I remember one night, Trey came in with new lyrics for the top of Act 2 for this number called Spooky Mormon Hell Dream. And he was like, we wrote these new lyrics. And I was. And he was like, can you do it tonight? And I said, okay. And I just did it. And I remember they told the cast, they were like, andrew's gonna sing some different lyrics tonight. And I was like, I'm just gonna do it. And we just did it.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow.

[Andrew Rannells]

You know, when you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Did anyone else on stage ever freak out and go, those aren't the right lyrics?

[Andrew Rannells]

No, everyone was really on board with, like, changing things. I mean, sometimes people would forget things. Josh.

[Stephen Colbert]

Gad. Okay, the lyrics. We were talking before, the lyrics are. Are a little spicy at times.

[Robert Lopez]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

What do you mean? Were you surprised that the people in the audience like that enjoyed them that you didn't think maybe would.

[Andrew Rannells]

Wow. I thought that the. You know, we all thought the show would find, like, a very niche, supportive audience. I certainly never thought the show would be on tour in Salt Lake City. Like, that's. That's pretty insane. How's it doing Salt Lake?

[Stephen Colbert]

You know what I mean?

[Andrew Rannells]

I think it killed. It killed.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, great.

[Andrew Rannells]

Now we found an audience. See, there are filthy people everywhere. Stephen,

[Stephen Colbert]

thank you for listening to the Late Show Pod show with Stephen Colbert. Just one more thing. If you want to see more of me, come to The Late Show YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives. It is my great honor to welcome you all to Starfleet Academy.

[Trey Parker]

There's never been a better time to

[Stephen Colbert]

enroll in Star Trek. It's our job to prepare you for the unimaginable. To the Night Cadet.

[Andrew Rannells]

In high pressure situations, positive reinforcement is crucial to one's success. You're doing a great job.

[Trey Parker]

This is what we train for.

[Stephen Colbert]

These friends of mine, they all live for something bigger than themselves. Starfleet Academy new series now streaming on Paramount.

[Andrew Rannells]

Me and my brother, we grew up off the grid.

[Matt Stone]

A new Paramount original documentary explores the wild true story of two brothers.

[Andrew Rannells]

They were dubbed the Wild Boys.

[Stephen Colbert]

There's no driving records, nothing tangible.

[Andrew Rannells]

What's their story?

[Stephen Colbert]

Who shook a small town after they emerged mysteriously from the Canadian wilderness. Are they criminals? Maybe they're in a cult.

[Andrew Rannells]

Who are these guys?

[Stephen Colbert]

Why are they here? It's not my job, to tell you the truth. Wild Boys Strangers In Town now streaming on Paramount plus.