Do ‘Elsbeth’ Premiere Photos Hint at Scandal With Stephen Colbert’s Character?

There’s a character from Elsbeth Season 2 who’s surprisingly included in the first photos from the upcoming season. Given this character’s ties to an important storyline about Elsbeth Tascioni’s (Carrie Preston) past, their presence in the Elsbeth Season 3 premiere, which is tied to Stephen Colbert‘s fictional late-night show, raises questions.

Elsbeth Season 3 has a two-part premiere. The first episode airs on a special night, Sunday, October 12, at 9:30/8:30c. The second episode airs at Elsbeth‘s usual time, Thursday, October 17, at 10/9c. In Episode 1, titled “Yes, And…,” Elsbeth dives into the world of late-night comedy when backstage tensions rise between a talk show host, Scotty Bristol (Colbert), his head writer Laurel (Amy Sedaris), and her on-air sidekick husband, Mickey (Andy Richter). Also, Elsbeth meets a new police officer (Lindsay Mendez) who is an aspiring stand-up comic when off the clock.

Marcia DeBonis appears in the gallery below with Colbert on the set of Way Late With Scotty Bristol. DeBonis played Sheryl in Elsbeth Season 2 Episode 9, whom Elsbeth met at the wellness retreat episode that guest-starred Eric McCormack as the killer of the week.

Elsbeth opened up to Sheryl about the secrets of her life in Chicago that were coming back to haunt her. Michael Emerson‘s Judge Crawford leaked information about the case that prompted Elsbeth to leave Chicago in a panic. She broke down in tears as she opened up to Sheryl in a scene that showrunner Jonathan Tolins called the “most emotional scene we’ve ever done.”

While Judge Crawford was murdered by Delia Kirby (Meredith Holzman) in one of the final episodes of Season 2, Elsbeth’s presence at the scene of the crime when it happened is going to make a sticky situation in Season 3, Tolins previously told TV Insider. The Delia story is done because she killed the judge in broad daylight in front of witnesses. “It’s a pretty open-and-shut case,” Tolins said. But “the way that whole experience affects Elsbeth — and the way people perceive Elsbeth because of her perceived connection to what happened — that will continue.”

Is Elsbeth going to be more of a public figure in Season 3, and a scandalous one at that? Scroll through the Elsbeth Season 3 premiere gallery for more on what’s to come, including what looks like an affair for Colbert’s character.