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SALT LAKE CITY — The man. The myth. The monolith.
The Late Show host Stephen Colbert spoke on what has become Utah's latest viral sensation: the monolith. The monolith was found among the red rocks in southeastern Utah on Nov. 18 by Utah Department of Public Safety employees who were on a helicopter counting bighorn sheep. Many people automatically drew connections between the 12-foot metal mystery and aliens.
Colbert opened his show by diving deep into theories and then showing a monolith-centered Utah tourism video.
"Is it aliens making first contact? Is it a site-specific art installation that examines the dynamic tension between man and nature? Or is it a really poorly installed stainless steel backsplash," said Colbert on Wednesday night. "Utah is the ultimate open-concept kitchen."
Colbert also had his suspicions about Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Nick Street and whether he is actually a human or an out-of-this-world decoy. First, he pointed out that Street said the structure appeared to be put together with "human-made rivets" in an interview with The New York Times, which, he pointed out, does not sound like something a human would say. Second, Colbert said "Nick Street" sounded like the name of a "panicked galactic traveler making his name up on the spot."
Street has been interviewed several times on KSL.com and our writers can confirm, he is a real human being.
OMG. @colbertlateshow hilarious!
— Lt. Nick Street (@LtStreetPIO) November 26, 2020
Me: Well, I didn't want to offend anyone by saying 'man-made'.
Honda Mailbox: Couldn't you have just called them, 'rivets'? pic.twitter.com/dUqmJpJLQ0
Colbert lastly pointed out that Utah officials said it was "interesting" that while there are roads close by, hauling the large material and cutting into the rock in a remote location is unusual. He countered that instead of being interesting, it sounded more like the opening scenes of a sci-fi movie.
While it is likely the work of a human artist, the Bureau of Land Management tweeted that "occupying, or developing the public lands or their resources without a required authorization is illegal, no matter what planet you are from."
Since many have compared Utah's monolith to other alien symbols in Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey," Colbert said he had written up a movie script starring Zendaya, Paul Giamatti, Chris Pine and Vin Diesel as "The Monolith."
Bonus: In a Utah tourism video, or monolith movie trailer, created by the Late Show, all of the state's natural wonders are beautifully showcased: from national parks and ski resorts to the monolith's commanding powers.
"Come for the fun; stay because the monolith commands it!"
