Jacinda Ardern and Lorde appear on US Show 'The Late Show'

She may be New Zealand's brightest pop star, but even Lorde is scared of snakes.

Or she was, at least, by the fake snake that leapt at her on Stephen Colbert's The Late Show.

The talk show skit shows the superstar leap back in surprise, as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern laughs.

The week-long series, dubbed "New Zealand Week", chronicles Colbert's Kiwi adventures and features an interview with Ardern, rugby lessons with "legends from the All Blacks" and a tour of Wellington with stars Lucy Lawless and Bret McKenzie.

In his opening of the show, Colbert explained why he was dedicating a whole week of his shows to New Zealand.

"Trump's impeachment is really heating up — it's gearing up, it's ramping up," he said.

"The fate of our nation hangs in the balance. That is why all week we will have complete coverage of my amazing trip to New Zealand."

The coverage will also debut scenes filmed for a Lord of the Rings "spinoff" in a trip to Hobbiton with Sir Peter Jackson, giving more context to photos snapped of Colbert wearing his old costume from his cameo in The Hobbit.

Colbert visited the country in October after Ardern first appeared on The Late Show last year, extending an invitation to him along with an offer of citizenship to Hobbiton.

Taxpayers forked out more than $100,000 for late-night talk show host and his crew while they were in New Zealand.

Colbert also snapped a selfie with the PM at the time, and tweeted it with the caption: "Just hanging out in Auckland with the PM. She appointed me president of New Zealand ... I think. I'm pretty jet-lagged."

He caught up with Ardern in Auckland, where the pair were spotted filing at Kind Cafe and Eatery in Morningside.

At the time, Tourism New Zealand said it was expecting a "significant return on investment" of $5 million in estimated advertising value from Colbert's trip.

This article was first published on the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.