This fall, you might notice thatSaturday Night Livelooks alittledifferent.
(Hello tothese four new cast members.)
1.If you could travel back in time, what advice would you give your younger self before your firstSNLaudition?
I’m just kidding.
It’ll be fine, you know what I mean?
Just believe in what’s gotten you there to that point.
But that s— would’ve gone in and out of one ear.
If I blew it, that was just going to be it.
I would attempt to calm myself down, but it wouldn’t work.
It is a life-changing kind of thing.
And at the same time, I had to do standup for the first time for this life-changing moment.
But at the same time, there was a little bit of, “I got this.”
But it wasn’t much.
What is the character or line that fans ask you to do or so say the most?
Well, I think they say it to me is: “What’s up with that?”
A lot of people go, “What’s up with that?”
It’s good for passing kind of conversation: “What’s up with that?”
“What’s up with that.”
What is the key to writing a breakoutSNLsong?
I think it depends on the topical-ness of it how current the idea is.
And then you have a nice reveal of what it is.
How long does it take you to fall asleep after a show?
Like, we go in at noon and once you’re at 30 Rock, you feel it.
You know it’s Saturday.
There’s no leaving until the show is done.
You know what I’m saying?
So there’s no getting off the roller coaster.
“My god, what is going to happen?”
or “Yay!!!”
It graduated intoThe Wallnow hello!
it’s a great conceptual thing to watch.
WhichSNLhost most surprised you?
And that’s how he lives his life.
I’m like, man, that’s beautiful.
That’s the secret to that no-stress look that he has all the time.
What is your pre-show ritual before going live?
I have several pre-show rituals before going live.
One of the main ones is I sing the warm-up.
I mean, it’s not necessarilymyritual; it’s kind of the show’s ritual.
So it’s kind of forced karaoke a little bit.Butthey enjoy it.
And just going over everything a million different times basically and double checking.
I don’t look over the shoulders of my departments necessarily, because I trust them at this point.
And it wasn’t a lot in the beginning.
So I had to double-check I got at leastthatright.
What is one surprising thing aboutSNLoverlord Lorne Michaels?
He’s actually very gentle.
He’s a gentle giant, you know what I mean?
So I walked with him one time.
This homeless guy was just like, “Can you help me out?
And I was like, “Man, I don’t have any cash.”
He wasn’t like, “Oh, I got only hundreds.
I gotta go make some change.”
He didn’t do that.
He just slid him one and didn’t think twice about it.
We kept it moving.
I found that to be very sweet.
How did it feel to earn Phil Hartman’s nickname of “The Glue” from your fellowSNLcast members?
To be in the same sentence as Phil is always incredible.
So it was like in the clouds and everybody kind of got up and was schmoozing around a little.
And people wanted to talk to each other.
He was just like, “Man, I’m such a fan of you guys.”
Like the Leslie Nielsens and the dry delivery or whatever.
Phil had a charisma to it as well as like a physical level there that was just unmatched.
How do you unwind on your one off-day fromSNL?
Lately it’s been Broadway.
My one day off ofSNLgo-to unwinding relaxation thing has been catching a Broadway show.
I’ve seen a lot of plays and musicals lately, and man, those people never disappoint.
They’re so talented and they work so hard.
I know the theater life.
I grew up doing theater and stuff like that, so I don’t know.
That’s a lot.
That’s a lot of working out to get to that level even.
Bro, I respect it, but yeah, I could skip that.
What’s an impression you would never do again?
That’s a tough one.
I don’t know if I pushed anybody’s button.
Everybody is pretty friendly.
What is the sketch you are proudest of?
I had been kind of writing and offering ideas for years.
And that one was close to home because I grew up with those movies and stuff like that.
So that one always made me very happy to do.
And I feel like the ultimate, it’s between “What’s Up With That?”
- Who is the one ex-cast member you wish you had the chance to work with?
It’s probably Tracy [Morgan].
That guy makes me laugh so much.
He’s been like a very close big brother, this whole kind of experience.
It’s just his mentality, basically.
And that boy says wild things.
It’s really hilarious.
But he’s got a heart of gold.
So to witness him in a work environment would’ve been a lot of fun.
But, man, he’s such a joy to be around.
Is there anAll Thatsketch that you think would work onSNL?
I want to say there’s some sketches fromAll Thatthat would work onSNL.
I feel likePierre Escargotcould work, you know?
That could be funny.
Yeah, Ask Ashley!
I think those kind of things would work because it’s a talent showcase, and that’s whatSNLis.
It’s like, “Here are the people we think is funny.
And America usually tends to agree.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen at anSNLafterparty?
It wasn’t necessarily crazy, but it was crazy-awesome, if that counts.
Maya Rudolph just performed at the finale and she has a Prince cover band that she travels around with.
- Who is the one former cast member you want to host your final show?
I’ve worked with Will Ferrell because he’s hosted.
I haven’t met Cheri yet.
I think Cheri Oteri would be very cool to be around.
You know what I mean?
It’s just a pleasure usually to be around them.
So I would love to meet Cheri.
What is your strategy to keep from breaking?
My go-to strategy to keep from breaking is to allow the smirk to happen.
Just allow a little acknowledgement of, “This is funny,” and then plow through, basically.
It makes me laugh.
I think that’s what everybody’s always watching for.
But also any kind of break in it is just as enjoyable.
- Who is someone behind the scenes atSNLthat deserves more credit?
Every department from production to the guys lifting the walls they’re all mandatory, they’re all special.
I think they all appreciate the place.
You know what I mean?
or ‘What up with that?,'” and I’m like, “It’s both.”
So whatever I ended up saying in the moment was just what I said.
