When we learned Michael Shannon was going to appear on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, we knew that the focus would be on his upcoming movie Nuremberg. However, there was always a chance that there would be a comment or two about Death By Lightning.
Nuremberg is the latest release, focused on the Nazi trials of the past. Shannon takes on the role of Court Justice Robert Jackson, who was the man behind the creation of the trials. While there were comments about the reminder that the Nazis were the bad guys in World War II, the focus then moved to Shannon’s latest miniseries, Death By Lightning, where he plays President James Garfield.
A man who wanted to serve on Death By Lightning
It’s sometimes hard to understand what goes on when a person takes Office. After all, there are so few people who have had the experience, and we don’t really know how we would react until we’re in those shoes. So, Stephen Colbert asked about what it was like to step into the shoes of the President. Did it allow Shannon to look at the presidency any differently?
Shannon shared that the one thing he noted about playing Garfield was the type of man Garfield was. The 20th President of the United States was very “devoted to being of service.” Shannon went on to share:
“He didn’t look at it as a power play or being a ‘king’ or whatever. He actually thought his job was to help people.”
It was a sly dig toward the current President, especially with the comment of “king” in air quotes. This connects back to the “No Kings” protests as the people speak out against Trump’s current authoritarian decisions while in the White House.
Despite the dig, Shannon kept the focus on Death By Lightning and working with Nick Offerman, who plays Chester Arthur, who would become the 21st President. It turns out that the two are in a Foreigner video somewhere out there, and now we need to know more!
A discussion of Nuremberg on The Late Show
Most of the interview was focused on the new movie focused on the Nazi trials after World War II. Colbert shared a scene from the movie, and it turns out that the scene was around 20 pages in the script, and the original plan was to film the scene over the course of three days.
Shannon and Russell Crowe wanted to film the entire scene in one long take. This would allow them to keep the momentum and tension felt in the scene. Take a look at the whole clip:
Nuremberg is out in theaters now, and it’s a must-watch!
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert airs on weeknights at 11:35/10:35c on CBS.