Stephen Colbert on Thursday opened “The Late Show” with a major announcement about one of his final episodes after CBS canceled the program, revealing the identity of one of his last guests to rabid cheers and applause from the New York City audience.

“Folks, before we get started, I have a quick but exciting announcement,” Colbert said. “Tuesday, May 5, here on ‘The Late Show,’ in his first interview from the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, I will be sitting down with former President Barack Obama.”

That decision could certainly be interpreted as a dig at President Donald Trump, who publicly celebrated the show’s cancellation.

Obama has appeared on the program before, for a pre-taped interview in 2020.

Colbert on Thursday acknowledged all the theories about his post-“Late Show” plans, joking that they run the gamut from “I’m moving to CNN to I’m announcing a massive wildlife rescue program to I’m running for president of the United States.”

While that latter theory prompted another round of cheers at the Ed Sullivan Theater, Colbert has already managed to snag his dream gig. The “Lord of the Rings” mega-fan revealed last month that he and his son are co-writing a feature film installment in the franchise.

Colbert couldn’t help but poke fun at the rumors, however, and joked, “I can tell you tonight, I can reveal right now, that all of those are partially true. Next year, I will be president of an animal sanctuary dedicated to caring for the rare Blitzer Wolf.”

The crowd lost it when an image appeared of Colbert bottle-feeding CNN host Wolf Blitzer.

Colbert and his colleagues have all been lambasted by Trump, who in recent months has called for Jimmy Kimmel to get taken “off the air,” said he’ll be “finding out” about Seth Meyers’ contract with NBC and said that Jimmy “Fallon will be gone” soon.

“The Late Show” episode featuring Obama airs 11:35 p.m. ET May 5 on CBS.

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