This coming weekend will see Sam Rockwell taking the SNL stage for the first time, but January 2018 has yet more celebs in store. Season 43 will continue the year with fellow first-timer Jessica Chastain, along with SNL vet Will Ferrell.
Any great live performance takes a skilled crew working invisibly behind the scenes, and SNL is no different. See for yourself, as a new behind-the-scenes video shows us exactly what’s involved in transitioning from one set to another, going from Donald Trump’s office to Casey Affleck’s monologue in one fell swoop.
Once upon a time, Alec Baldwin thought he might get to retire his SNL rendition of Donald Trump, as the world moved on with a Clinton presidency. Now, over a month past the election and three appearances since, Baldwin reveals not only a surprisingly small takehome for the role, but also the likelihood of a regular presence going forward.
Trump cabinet picks have been bad, but not Breaking Bad, at least until now. The SNL cold open for John Cena’s debut hour got Bryan Cranston reprising his iconic role as Walter White, tapped to head the DEA (what else) in the new administration.
SNL has been through enough big moments in recent weeks to overshadow our Halloween obsession with David S. Pumpkins, but as the sketch itself insisted, several questions remain. Where did the “S” initial suddenly come from, and how did such a memorably ridiculous idea come to pass? Allow Bobby Moynihan to explain.
SNL hasn’t yet revealed its final host of Season 41, let alone what, if any cast turnover to expect in Season 42, but a notable change is already afoot. The NBC mainstay will cut at least two commercial breaks from live airings next season, but what might replace the additional runtime?
Eternally associated with the role of Seinfeld’s Elaine (and since 2013, Veep’s title boss), Julia Louis-Dreyfus garners significantly less recognition for her time as an SNL player in the mid ‘80s. Now, with her third SNL hosting turn this coming weekend, Dreyfus reveals that her initial SNL years weren’t fond memories, given some of the sexism and lacking recognition.
Maybe you didn’t realize how much you missed Will Ferrell’s George W. Bush impression on SNL until the actor popped in for a surprise appearance during the cold open, delivering a State of the Union address on our current crop of GOP presidential hopefuls — which is essentially just Ferrell’s Dubbya roasting his fellow Republicans in an attempt to make an unprecedented bid for a third term as POTUS.