If Stephen Colbert's coy response to a Playboy question about a possible cameo in The Hobbit had the ring of truthiness to it, that's probably because he wasn't joking.

While he would only say, "We'll see," The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed with "a knowledgeable source" that the host of The Colbert Report -- and avowed J.R.R. Tolkien fanatic -- will indeed appear in Peter Jackson's movie trilogy.

The extent of Colbert's role is unknown, but he apparently won't appear in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which opens Dec. 14. Keep your eyes peeled on Dec. 13, 2013 and July 18, 2014, when Desolation of Smaug and There and Back Again premiere respectively.

Jackson’s three-movie adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s beloved fantasy novel stars Martin Freeman and Ian McKellen, and features returning Lord of the Rings stars Cate Blanchett, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom and Andy Serkis. The ensemble cast also includes Richard Armitage, John Bell, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Barry Humphries, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Evangeline Lilly, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas and Aidan Turner.