Phillipe Petit (aka "Man on Wire") stopped into The Colbert Report last night and seemed to get off as easy as any Frenchman could expect facing down the man who has a "Freedom Sundae" named after him. Since Petit does not like to answer interviewer's queries as to why he participated in his death-defying feats, Colbert bucked the question by asking him why he didn't not do it.
Any language barrier between the two quickly seemed inconsequential when Petit matched Colbert's ironic bravado by cutting the host off and correcting him when he suggested that Petit's Twin Towers walk was only "perhaps" the most amazing stunt of its kind. But Petit may have taken some of the sheen off of his accomplishments by spilling the beans on his origins: he's not originally from the planet Earth!
Man on Wire might be the best chance the Big Apple has to getting in on any Oscar action this year (it's nominated for Best Documentary Feature). The video of Petit and Colbert is below. And for more of Petit detailing his relationship with the NYPD, check out when he talked with us last summer.
