- 17 hours ago
Watch SNL50 Beyond Saturday Night Onl... Season 1 Episode 2 (2025) full episode online in HD quality. Stream the latest episode of SNL50 Beyond Saturday Night Onl... on Dailymotion now.
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00:30I am honored to be here
00:00:31I was a writer here for nine years
00:00:35And I've always thought of myself
00:00:37More of a writer than as a performer
00:00:39Oh boy, oh boy
00:00:42You know, Tina
00:00:47I was one small like you
00:00:51People forget that I got my start as a writer
00:00:53And why did they forget?
00:00:54Because I wanted them to forget
00:00:56Look at you, all slouched over
00:00:59Like a writer, all apologetic
00:01:02Look at those writers
00:01:03You don't want to end up like them
00:01:07Do you think that
00:01:09That the writers get the credit
00:01:11That they deserve?
00:01:12Absolutely not
00:01:13No
00:01:15I don't think so
00:01:18Well, no
00:01:19No, no
00:01:21No, I don't think so at all
00:01:23Oh dear
00:01:25We've really stepped on a landmine here
00:01:28People don't think about the writers
00:01:29You know what I mean?
00:01:30It's like the second-class citizen
00:01:32They're not valued in any way
00:01:35I believe our names roll by extremely fast
00:01:39Over shots of the castmates
00:01:41Hugging and meeting the famous people
00:01:45Like, oh, the sad writers
00:01:47That you never see
00:01:49Let me introduce myself
00:01:51I'm Gags Busby
00:01:52I'm a comedy writer
00:01:54Did the name ring about?
00:01:55No
00:01:56I usually work straight through the day
00:01:58Until dinner
00:01:59And I don't eat lunch
00:02:00Because I really can't afford it
00:02:01What's it like
00:02:02Looking like the last three guys
00:02:03A lesbian sleeps with
00:02:04Before coming out?
00:02:11In general, people
00:02:12When they watch an SNL sketch
00:02:14They don't think
00:02:14They don't think of the writer
00:02:16Behind the sketch at all
00:02:17I've had people come up to me
00:02:18And say
00:02:19SNL is so good
00:02:20But how much of it is improvised?
00:02:22And I have to say, like
00:02:24One percent?
00:02:26Maybe?
00:02:27God damn!
00:02:29I think in general
00:02:31People just think
00:02:32The actors say what they want
00:02:34It just comes out as funny
00:02:36And there's a coherent story there somehow
00:02:38Do you need anything from us
00:02:40About vampires?
00:02:42No
00:02:44But there is a team of writers
00:02:46We don't always send them out there
00:02:47With the very best material
00:02:49But it is written
00:02:51For the most part
00:02:52Quiet!
00:02:53And when it's done well
00:02:56Most people think
00:02:57As it should be
00:02:58That the actors made up their words
00:03:00Which is the greatest compliment
00:03:02To a writer
00:03:02And also
00:03:03The greatest burn
00:03:05At the same time
00:03:06Burn it!
00:03:09I will say
00:03:10I loved it more than any job
00:03:11I ever had
00:03:12And I'm so glad
00:03:13It's not my current job
00:03:15My highest highs
00:03:17And my lowest lows
00:03:20Honey
00:03:20Were at that show
00:03:23I like the sea of fire
00:03:25You get thrown into
00:03:27Writers are always going to write turds
00:03:29They're always going to write duels
00:03:31And it's just the spin of the wheel
00:03:33You know, every week
00:03:35Five
00:03:35Four
00:03:36Three
00:03:37Two
00:03:38Hit it!
00:03:38Two
00:03:39Six
00:04:01You think we're going to do it
00:04:02C'est bon.
00:04:07C'est bon.
00:04:08C'est bon.
00:04:14C'est un peu plus intéressant, Sunday.
00:04:20What's up, everybody?
00:04:21Welcome back.
00:04:23Good show.
00:04:24Nice work.
00:04:25And if we could do it again,
00:04:27that would be wonderful.
00:04:29As a writer, your Monday depends on how your show,
00:04:33the previous Saturday, went.
00:04:35If you had a great show,
00:04:36maybe you're coming in Monday very excited
00:04:38and looking for a couple attaboys.
00:04:41If you had a terrible show,
00:04:42maybe you're coming in a little bit of a shell
00:04:45and with the hopes to redeem yourself.
00:04:48But either way,
00:04:49you're very quickly on to the new show, the new host.
00:04:53We just talked to her.
00:04:54She's a delight.
00:04:54She's down for pretty much anything.
00:04:57thinks she just wants to kind of play with the cast.
00:05:00Yeah.
00:05:01She said she's willing to attempt to sing,
00:05:03not the greatest singer,
00:05:05but is happy to do it.
00:05:06And I think she can do a lot of different things
00:05:08like voices and stuff.
00:05:10Yeah.
00:05:10Great.
00:05:10Cool.
00:05:11They tell us what the host is interested in doing
00:05:13and what they can do.
00:05:15What accents can they sing?
00:05:16Can they dance?
00:05:18Stay away from this topic.
00:05:19They would love to joke about this thing.
00:05:21So it's just giving us an idea
00:05:23of how we should tailor our writing.
00:05:27And then we'll all walk down the hall
00:05:29and line up.
00:05:30You can just,
00:05:31you can see the anxiety starting to build.
00:05:34And all the cast and writers pile into Lauren's office.
00:05:40And then we meet the host.
00:05:48And we go around the room
00:05:49and we pitch an idea
00:05:50and it's in the format of like,
00:05:52maybe you're a...
00:05:54Maybe you're a Boston duck boat driver
00:05:56and you're giving your safety speech,
00:05:59but you've forgotten the word ejected.
00:06:01So you keep telling people what to do
00:06:03in the unlikely event
00:06:05they get ejaculated.
00:06:09Maybe you play a character called
00:06:11the cocky dyslexic
00:06:12and so you're like,
00:06:15yeah, I'm a billionaire.
00:06:17Billionaire with a V.
00:06:22I would say half of the things
00:06:24you're pitching
00:06:24are probably something
00:06:26you thought of on the toilet
00:06:27right as you're walking
00:06:29into the pitch meeting.
00:06:30Those meetings were just bullshit.
00:06:32You would just make up stuff.
00:06:35You take two words,
00:06:36you put them together,
00:06:37you know,
00:06:38uh,
00:06:39sneaker farm.
00:06:40I want to do a thing called
00:06:41sneaker farm, okay?
00:06:42Then I go,
00:06:43fuck,
00:06:43now I've got to think of
00:06:44what a sneaker farm is.
00:06:45It's absolute smoke and mirrors.
00:06:48We're trying to trick the host
00:06:50into making them think
00:06:51that we've been thinking
00:06:52about them for a long time.
00:06:54I was thinking
00:06:54maybe you play a new superhero,
00:06:56but your superpower is just that
00:06:58you've had three espresso martinis.
00:07:03Most of the ideas you pitch are fake.
00:07:07If you actually did have a good idea,
00:07:09you would never pitch it
00:07:09because you would want
00:07:10the joke to be fresh
00:07:13at the table read,
00:07:14which isn't for another two days.
00:07:17The point of it is
00:07:20for the host to feel like,
00:07:22oh, I'm in good hands
00:07:23and these guys are really funny.
00:07:30The staff is definitely made up
00:07:33from a variety of people
00:07:35working comedy.
00:07:36And so, you know,
00:07:37there's a bunch of stand-ups,
00:07:39there's a bunch of improvisers,
00:07:41there's a bunch of whatever I am.
00:07:43and, you know,
00:07:45like people have all these
00:07:46weird backgrounds.
00:07:48I know it's kind of crazy,
00:07:49but yeah,
00:07:50I was a dental receptionist
00:07:51before I worked here.
00:07:52So I like quit my dentist job
00:07:54on like,
00:07:55it was like a Monday.
00:07:57And then by Saturday,
00:07:59something I wrote
00:08:00was like on TV.
00:08:04Yeah.
00:08:05Well, so you're talking
00:08:06to a stand-up.
00:08:07So it's easy to write comedy for me.
00:08:10I think Alex auditioned.
00:08:11I know he worked
00:08:13at the Top of the Rock tour thing.
00:08:16So, you know,
00:08:16he was already in the building.
00:08:18Thank God.
00:08:19Jimmy and I both started
00:08:21writing here last year.
00:08:22When I first met,
00:08:23you remember when I was like,
00:08:24oh my God,
00:08:25I can't believe we're here.
00:08:26And she was like,
00:08:27yeah, like,
00:08:28hopefully I don't get fired.
00:08:29And I was like,
00:08:31we're not getting fired.
00:08:33We are going to seriously explode.
00:08:35She's back there
00:08:36churning out ideas
00:08:37and Jimmy's out there
00:08:38selling them.
00:08:39I think he used to be
00:08:40a go-go dancer, though.
00:08:42You should ask him.
00:08:43I can't verify that.
00:08:45Wait, what?
00:08:47I mean,
00:08:47I came up through UCB
00:08:49here in New York,
00:08:49so I auditioned for the show
00:08:50as a performer
00:08:51and then they hired me
00:08:52as a writer.
00:08:52I went to NYU
00:08:54for playwriting
00:08:55and was like,
00:08:56great, this is it.
00:08:57I'm going to be a playwright
00:08:58and write about things
00:08:59that really matter.
00:09:01And then basically
00:09:02immediately got like
00:09:03the most corporate comedy.
00:09:04job in the world.
00:09:06Yeah, so Les was a playwright.
00:09:08August was a poet.
00:09:10It's kind of weird stuff
00:09:12that you wouldn't necessarily
00:09:13think is a straight line
00:09:15into sketch comedy writing.
00:09:18But I do think
00:09:19it kind of takes a mix
00:09:20of all those types of people
00:09:22to kind of get this thing
00:09:23on TV every week.
00:09:25Maybe you're part of
00:09:27a three documentary
00:09:28film crew pileup
00:09:29where like
00:09:30one crew's following you around
00:09:32and then you're running
00:09:33to two friends
00:09:33on an HR crew.
00:09:39All right, nice job
00:09:40last week.
00:09:41Let's start.
00:09:47How do you feel?
00:09:48Yeah.
00:09:50There's an anxiety
00:09:50after Monday pitch
00:09:52because the next day
00:09:54there's going to be
00:09:5440 to 50 sketches
00:09:56written by everybody
00:09:57and you hope that
00:09:58one of yours
00:09:59will be selected.
00:10:00But the panic
00:10:02I find doesn't set in
00:10:04until Tuesday.
00:10:05Yep.
00:10:31there's a kind of
00:10:34weird, scary calmness
00:10:36to Tuesday nights
00:10:38where it's like
00:10:40everybody has
00:10:41the same job to do.
00:10:43Which is like
00:10:45write whatever
00:10:46they think
00:10:47is the funniest
00:10:49most urgent
00:10:50thing to write.
00:10:53and it's like
00:10:55it's not over
00:10:56until it's over
00:10:56and it's over
00:10:58when like
00:10:58every sketch
00:10:59is submitted.
00:11:05Tuesday is our
00:11:06hardest night
00:11:07for writers.
00:11:10I come in usually
00:11:12like 12.30
00:11:13and I go home
00:11:13at like 3 a.m.
00:11:15I probably get to bed
00:11:16around 4 or 5 a.m.
00:11:18Pretty crazy.
00:11:18Like I'll usually
00:11:19go to bed
00:11:19at like 6.30
00:11:20on a Tuesday
00:11:21which is not good
00:11:23for my mental health
00:11:24and I will say
00:11:25like this has been
00:11:26like the most
00:11:27incredible experience
00:11:28working here ever
00:11:28and my mental health
00:11:30has never been worse.
00:11:33I hated it.
00:11:36I hated it
00:11:37because when I got
00:11:38to work on Tuesday
00:11:40I knew I wouldn't
00:11:42get to sleep
00:11:42until Wednesday.
00:11:43Okay.
00:11:46Writing comedy
00:11:47is either easy
00:11:48or it's impossible
00:11:51and if it's easy
00:11:53it's really fun
00:11:55and if it's impossible
00:11:57it's terrible
00:11:58because you can't
00:11:59think anything
00:12:00and that's your job.
00:12:05You know I've been
00:12:06doing stand-up
00:12:07since I was 17
00:12:08and if somebody said
00:12:10what's your process
00:12:11for writing a joke
00:12:12I'd be like
00:12:12I don't know.
00:12:15But if I force myself
00:12:17to sit down
00:12:19something will come
00:12:20from it.
00:12:23Okay so like
00:12:25Oh I have an idea
00:12:27where I thought
00:12:30you could be
00:12:31the tooth fairy
00:12:31and I could be
00:12:32your financial planner
00:12:33and I'd be like
00:12:33you have no cash
00:12:35you only got teeth
00:12:36like your business
00:12:38plan makes no sense.
00:12:39It's short-sighted
00:12:40girl.
00:12:41It's short-sighted.
00:12:42Respect yourself.
00:12:42Respect yourself.
00:12:44Yeah.
00:12:45Do you hate that?
00:12:47No I think that's fair
00:12:48I think it's a great
00:12:49jump-off point.
00:12:51You have to live
00:12:53with the foreknowledge
00:12:55that more than likely
00:12:56your first draft
00:12:57is not going to be
00:12:58very good.
00:13:01Gilda
00:13:02used to call it
00:13:03the vomit draft
00:13:05that you would
00:13:06vomit out the words
00:13:09she'd say
00:13:09then you start
00:13:10picking out the corn.
00:13:14She was like
00:13:15Miss Emily Dickinson
00:13:16ladies and gentlemen.
00:13:17But that's
00:13:18exactly what it is
00:13:20you're vomiting
00:13:20and then you're
00:13:21picking out the corn.
00:13:26I was raised
00:13:27by two immigrants
00:13:27in Boston
00:13:28so of course
00:13:29I'm in therapy.
00:13:31Yeah.
00:13:32That's gonna be funny.
00:13:34I like the monologue
00:13:35because it's always
00:13:36in the show.
00:13:39Can't cut the monologue.
00:13:42You can cut my sketch
00:13:43though.
00:13:45The choice of host
00:13:46absolutely influences
00:13:47the type of sketch
00:13:49you're gonna write
00:13:49and the best hosts
00:13:51for my money
00:13:52are the ones
00:13:53who come in
00:13:53and have moves
00:13:55that you maybe
00:13:56didn't understand
00:13:57they had.
00:13:58Hi.
00:14:01Whoa.
00:14:03Shrek.
00:14:04Yeah, I'm Shrek.
00:14:05I don't care
00:14:06about fashion.
00:14:08I think people
00:14:09who try too hard
00:14:10with their outfits
00:14:10are maybe
00:14:11hiding something.
00:14:15We have to take care
00:14:17of this oompa loompa
00:14:18situation.
00:14:19They need green cards,
00:14:20William.
00:14:21We're not making
00:14:21tennis shoes here.
00:14:23We're oompa loompa
00:14:24doopity screwed.
00:14:26I used to try
00:14:27to think of like,
00:14:28okay, I'm gonna make
00:14:28a list of things
00:14:29that match their type
00:14:30and a list of things
00:14:31that are very
00:14:32against their type.
00:14:33She's 67
00:14:34and was once
00:14:35the personal concubine
00:14:36of Ravel.
00:14:37Say hello to Coco.
00:14:40Which is how
00:14:41I ended up
00:14:42writing this sketch
00:14:43where Garth Brooks
00:14:44plays an old
00:14:45French prostitute.
00:14:48Hello, Dawn.
00:14:49Hello, hello.
00:14:53Boom.
00:14:53This is the magic
00:14:54of deciding
00:14:55what to write
00:14:56every week.
00:14:57For me,
00:14:57a lot of times,
00:14:58I'll make a note
00:14:59of like a trope
00:15:00even without an idea
00:15:01for what the sketch is.
00:15:02Like, let's try to find
00:15:03something funny
00:15:04about this.
00:15:05Some of it is topical.
00:15:06Some of it is just
00:15:07stuff, you know,
00:15:08I happened in my life.
00:15:10I keep a little
00:15:11notes app,
00:15:12you know,
00:15:13with ideas.
00:15:14Some weeks
00:15:15when you don't have
00:15:16a lot of ideas,
00:15:16I'm just on my phone
00:15:17like flipping through
00:15:18my notes.
00:15:19I won't show you
00:15:20the exact ideas,
00:15:22but, you know,
00:15:22this is all the ideas
00:15:23I've had, you know,
00:15:24in the last like
00:15:25maybe two months
00:15:26or so.
00:15:26That's crap.
00:15:27That's crap.
00:15:28That's crap.
00:15:29Maybe this.
00:15:30Not all of them
00:15:30are great.
00:15:31A couple of these
00:15:32have gotten on the show,
00:15:33you know,
00:15:33but, uh,
00:15:34and some of them
00:15:34are terrible.
00:15:35We're stuck in an elevator.
00:15:37We're stuck in an elevator.
00:15:39You just hear the voice
00:15:40like from the elevator.
00:15:41It's like,
00:15:42okay, guys,
00:15:42hold tight.
00:15:43Yeah, we'll be right there.
00:15:44You know,
00:15:45it'll be 20 minutes max.
00:15:47Like, just try to stay calm.
00:15:48Okay.
00:15:50We can't trust that.
00:15:52Okay?
00:15:54If there's one thing
00:15:55that you could do in here,
00:15:57let's just say on the count of three,
00:15:58one, two, three.
00:15:59What's one thing you miss
00:16:00about society?
00:16:01Hooking up.
00:16:04When you're writing sketches
00:16:06on Tuesday night,
00:16:07you haven't yet learned
00:16:09how bad they are.
00:16:10You're living in this
00:16:11delusional bubble
00:16:12where everything you're producing
00:16:14is airtight.
00:16:15you're laughing hysterically
00:16:17at these sketches
00:16:19that you don't yet know
00:16:20are doomed.
00:16:21Bill and I stayed up
00:16:22all night brainstorming
00:16:23and what we discovered
00:16:24is that there are two things
00:16:25that everyone loves.
00:16:27Cats and lasers.
00:16:29That's right.
00:16:29Cats and lasers.
00:16:31I think it would be
00:16:32perfect for the show.
00:16:33I don't know.
00:16:34It doesn't sound good.
00:16:36Okay.
00:16:36That's fair.
00:16:37But I think you should watch it
00:16:39before you make
00:16:40any final decisions.
00:16:44laser cats.
00:16:46Sometimes the stream
00:16:47of consciousness,
00:16:49just get in the zone,
00:16:51you're delirious, works.
00:16:53So, what do you think?
00:16:55Get up.
00:16:56And sometimes you'd write that
00:16:57and it indeed does not
00:16:59make any sense
00:17:00and no one wants
00:17:01to laugh at it.
00:17:03I feel fine right now,
00:17:04but it is getting late,
00:17:06so I'm going to start
00:17:07feeling crazy in a little bit.
00:17:10so I've been writing
00:17:11this one for like
00:17:11seven hours.
00:17:13I think we all get like
00:17:14three verses,
00:17:16but we'll make it
00:17:17one long verse
00:17:18and he get a chunk,
00:17:19I get a chunk.
00:17:20I get a chunk.
00:17:21I feel like the verse
00:17:22should be random,
00:17:23like barely on beat,
00:17:24like my husband hates me.
00:17:27I think my kids are gay,
00:17:28but that's okay.
00:17:30Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:17:31I'm a mom,
00:17:32but I'm trash.
00:17:33I'm a wife,
00:17:33but I'm trash.
00:17:34I think my kids are gay
00:17:35because my husband is gay.
00:17:38I'm stupid
00:17:39and people don't like me.
00:17:41Whenever I talk,
00:17:43people want to fight me.
00:17:44I hit my sister.
00:17:46Why the hell bite me?
00:17:50Why the hell bite me?
00:17:57Even just sitting
00:17:59at this desk
00:17:59on Tuesday nights,
00:18:00you'll hear screaming
00:18:02down the hall
00:18:03and sometimes,
00:18:04half the time,
00:18:04I'm worried
00:18:06that I should
00:18:06maybe check in,
00:18:07but I trust the process.
00:18:09I let them do their thing.
00:18:10Hey!
00:18:11Hurry, it out!
00:18:19Hey, it's Taryn.
00:18:20It's 4.30 in the morning
00:18:23on riding night.
00:18:24It is delirium.
00:18:26You have delirious dance parties
00:18:28in the middle of the night
00:18:29where, you know,
00:18:30you're doing a conga line
00:18:31through the place.
00:18:34You know,
00:18:35there was just always
00:18:35something going on.
00:18:38I used to take tampons
00:18:40and dip them in water
00:18:42and then whip them
00:18:43against the wall
00:18:44and they just splat
00:18:45and they'll stay there
00:18:46for years.
00:18:48I remember Tom Davis
00:18:49would come around
00:18:50with a boombox
00:18:51playing Baba O'Reilly,
00:18:53that Who song.
00:18:54He would play that
00:18:56in full volume
00:18:57and wake me up.
00:19:00You have to understand,
00:19:02we could stay up
00:19:04for 95,000 hours.
00:19:06We were very,
00:19:08very young
00:19:09and having a good time.
00:19:12Ho, ho, ho!
00:19:14That first season
00:19:16of SNL,
00:19:18that's what they did.
00:19:19Everyone just made out
00:19:21with everyone
00:19:21and, like,
00:19:22boned everyone.
00:19:23It was beautiful.
00:19:28We did get work done,
00:19:30but there was a lot
00:19:31of, you know,
00:19:32goofing around.
00:19:34You know,
00:19:35it was the 70s,
00:19:36what can I say?
00:19:39Oh, gotta go!
00:19:41I'm in here!
00:19:43Oh!
00:19:44There was just
00:19:45always something going on
00:19:46in those middle-of-the-nights
00:19:48that would make people laugh
00:19:50and we'd all be crazy
00:19:51and then we'd go back
00:19:52to our room
00:19:52and be sitting there
00:19:53cooking.
00:19:54I hate to say it, Jan,
00:19:56but it appears
00:19:56Punxsutawney Phil
00:19:57has been shot!
00:19:59Eggo and Ayo
00:20:00enter as two
00:20:00animal control people.
00:20:01All right, chill!
00:20:02Chill, everybody chill!
00:20:03Everybody chill!
00:20:04We've neutralized
00:20:05the rodent!
00:20:07What?
00:20:07Oh my god,
00:20:08did you two shoot
00:20:08Punxsutawney Phil?
00:20:09Who the hell is Phil?
00:20:10We shot a rat!
00:20:11How do they not know
00:20:12about Groundhog's Day?
00:20:13Like, have they never
00:20:14seen the movie?
00:20:15This movie where that guy
00:20:16lives the same day
00:20:17over and over?
00:20:18Never seen it.
00:20:18But that happened
00:20:19to me once.
00:20:20What?
00:20:21What do you mean
00:20:21that happened to you?
00:20:22One time I kept waking up
00:20:23and it just kept being
00:20:24Tuesday, but turns out
00:20:25it was because I had
00:20:27rabies and was sleeping
00:20:28144 hours a night.
00:20:30And dump it.
00:20:32Okay.
00:20:35That new stuff feels good.
00:20:37I feel like Molly needs
00:20:37a new joke at the top.
00:20:42Did the Heidi and Michael
00:20:43stuff work?
00:20:44It didn't feel like it
00:20:47worked, but I don't trust
00:20:50it enough to believe
00:20:50it'll work again.
00:20:52Yeah.
00:20:54The worst is when we
00:20:55haven't fully settled
00:20:57on an idea.
00:20:58Like, even right now,
00:21:00yeah, we're kind of like,
00:21:01is this a viable sketch?
00:21:04in between ideas
00:21:05and it's 12-12.
00:21:09So it could be a late one.
00:21:11I feel like I have not
00:21:12written one word.
00:21:14And I have.
00:21:15Like, you know,
00:21:15there's some drafts going,
00:21:17but it's like...
00:21:17Yeah, I feel behind.
00:21:18I feel so behind
00:21:19and that's my feeling
00:21:20on Tuesday.
00:21:21It's like the dread
00:21:22of being behind.
00:21:23Oh my God,
00:21:23I have such crazy B.O.
00:21:26The cameras can't smell that.
00:21:28Just so you smell good.
00:21:30Okay, yeah.
00:21:32Most of the time
00:21:32it's like a slog
00:21:33where it's like
00:21:34I'm not even really
00:21:35doing my best comedy.
00:21:37It's just like,
00:21:37okay, the first funny line
00:21:39that I can think of.
00:21:41Maybe it's like,
00:21:41there's your first clue.
00:21:43Or rat-a-tat-tat.
00:21:45The details are flooding
00:21:46out of you,
00:21:47yet you can't remember
00:21:48my face.
00:21:49Yeah, he's like,
00:21:51what's rat-a-tat-tat?
00:21:52Like, it's like,
00:21:53oh, I'm hearing
00:21:54all this specific information.
00:21:56Rat-a-tat-tat.
00:22:02It's like you remember
00:22:03everything but me.
00:22:07I think that could actually work.
00:22:11Oh.
00:22:12Rat-a-tat-tat.
00:22:13Oh.
00:22:14The character suddenly
00:22:15has a new catchphrase
00:22:16and it's rat-a-tat-tat.
00:22:18So this is in really good shape.
00:22:21Yeah, this is feeling
00:22:22really, really good.
00:22:23Whatever.
00:22:25Most writing isn't like this.
00:22:26Like, most writing takes time
00:22:27and part of it is like,
00:22:30there's time between
00:22:31when you write it
00:22:31and when people see it.
00:22:32And here, there is
00:22:33not that much time.
00:22:35It's like,
00:22:36whatever I'm writing here
00:22:37is like,
00:22:38it is going to be said
00:22:39out loud tomorrow
00:22:40to other people.
00:22:41And that's like,
00:22:43a terrifying but
00:22:45pretty like,
00:22:50addictive part of the job.
00:23:09Yo, Frank.
00:23:10Frank, where it's at right now
00:23:12is perfect.
00:23:23I only slept like two hours
00:23:24here myself.
00:23:25So the brain's not firing
00:23:27too hot right now.
00:23:29And I'm sure I look amazing.
00:23:30I'm so glad you guys are
00:23:31here filming today.
00:23:33I did take a shower,
00:23:34so there's that.
00:23:36Marcello!
00:23:37I got this feeling in my body.
00:23:40I dropped the feeling.
00:23:41I got this feeling in my body.
00:23:45I love it.
00:23:45Isn't it fun to see
00:23:46what everybody worked on last night?
00:23:47I'm excited to hear
00:23:48everybody else's.
00:23:49Yeah.
00:23:51We're going to read
00:23:52between 35 and 40.
00:23:55Some will do great,
00:23:56I'm sure.
00:23:57Some will not.
00:24:00I think we'll know
00:24:01which ones do great
00:24:02and which ones don't.
00:24:11High school auditorium.
00:24:13Mikey's a teacher at a podium.
00:24:15Welcome back
00:24:16to the Madison High
00:24:17Geography B,
00:24:18where we put the fee
00:24:19in geography
00:24:20because you had to
00:24:22pay to participate.
00:24:24That's my joke.
00:24:25It's, you know,
00:24:26a little nerve-wracking
00:24:27because you've never heard
00:24:28your sketch read out loud before.
00:24:30And there's a real,
00:24:32you know,
00:24:33crapshoot element to it.
00:24:35When I was there,
00:24:37it was insane.
00:24:39We used to always do
00:24:40the table read
00:24:41in the writer's room.
00:24:42You just sit there
00:24:43packed in a hot room
00:24:45for five hours
00:24:46and go through every sketch.
00:24:49It was like heart surgery.
00:24:51Everyone's looking
00:24:51in the center of the table.
00:24:53With me tonight, Santa Claus.
00:24:55You know him from
00:24:56the toys and the reindeer.
00:24:57But now out this week,
00:24:59the definitive edition
00:25:00of Santa's pornographic work,
00:25:01Santa,
00:25:02Two Lumps of Coal,
00:25:03Uncovered.
00:25:07Wednesday morning,
00:25:08having been awake all night,
00:25:10I was like
00:25:11filled with
00:25:12excitement and expectation.
00:25:15I cared so much
00:25:16about how it did
00:25:17at the table.
00:25:19And those moments
00:25:20that were explosive
00:25:21at the table
00:25:21are fonder memories
00:25:23than how it played
00:25:24at dresser
00:25:25on the live show.
00:25:27I think that's the cool thing
00:25:28about the creative process
00:25:29is that if everyone knew
00:25:31mathematically how to create
00:25:32a perfect sketch,
00:25:33it would just be a science.
00:25:35And it really is
00:25:36a little bit unpredictable.
00:25:38Welcome back to
00:25:39Miss Irish Rose,
00:25:40the beauty pageant
00:25:41where we crown
00:25:42the most kind-hearted,
00:25:43gorgeous girl
00:25:44in all the land.
00:25:45The prize this year
00:25:45would be the brand new
00:25:46iPhone 8.
00:25:48But sometimes
00:25:49the thing that was
00:25:50cracking us up,
00:25:51like, it's read out loud
00:25:52and it's like,
00:25:53it's bone-chilling.
00:25:55It's silent.
00:25:58If the first two pages
00:25:59aren't working,
00:26:00there is a
00:26:02optimism from everybody else
00:26:04where they're thinking,
00:26:05you know what,
00:26:05maybe this third page
00:26:06is when it takes off.
00:26:07But you wrote it
00:26:09and you knew that
00:26:10in order for it to work,
00:26:11they had to already
00:26:12be laughing.
00:26:13It's not going to get
00:26:14any better.
00:26:14and the amount
00:26:15I wanted to stand up
00:26:16and say,
00:26:17we can just move on.
00:26:19I'm telling you right now,
00:26:20I,
00:26:21Uncle.
00:26:22Uncle.
00:26:22When I was there,
00:26:24if that happened,
00:26:25Paula Pell
00:26:25would usually give you
00:26:27a pity laugh
00:26:28of some kind
00:26:29so that you wouldn't
00:26:30jump out the window.
00:26:32Ha ha ha ha ha!
00:26:33And she's a great actor,
00:26:34so they almost sounded real.
00:26:36Every so often,
00:26:36we'd have a writer
00:26:37that laughs only
00:26:38at their own stuff
00:26:39and that used to
00:26:40burn my ass so bad.
00:26:41I always respected people
00:26:43who would laugh
00:26:44at other people's material.
00:26:46It was sort of like
00:26:47some eras,
00:26:48there was less of that.
00:26:51In later years,
00:26:53there was like,
00:26:53factions.
00:26:54There would be people
00:26:55who would be
00:26:57aggressively supportive
00:26:58of stuff
00:26:59that either they worked on
00:27:00or that their good buddies
00:27:01worked on.
00:27:02And then there's a way
00:27:04of aggressively not laughing
00:27:05at something
00:27:06which is more like,
00:27:07no.
00:27:09Andy Breckman
00:27:10had some hilarious
00:27:12writer's prayer
00:27:13and it was like,
00:27:14dear Lord,
00:27:16please let my sketch
00:27:18kill harder
00:27:18than anyone else's sketch,
00:27:20but please let me
00:27:21also be perceived
00:27:22as a team player.
00:27:23Ha ha ha ha!
00:27:25Even though everyone
00:27:26at ESL is working
00:27:27together to make
00:27:28one thing,
00:27:29no, though.
00:27:30It is built
00:27:31on competition.
00:27:32It is built for like,
00:27:33see you at the table.
00:27:35What was sad?
00:27:36What was sad?
00:27:37Who said what?
00:27:37I don't know!
00:27:39Who said that?
00:27:40Not me, though!
00:27:41God, no way!
00:27:42No, he did!
00:27:43What?
00:27:45I mean, it's
00:27:46kind of catchy.
00:27:47You, picture this.
00:27:48Me?
00:27:49Yeah, you.
00:27:50Little Miss Tits.
00:27:51Little Miss Tits?
00:27:51Yeah, Little Miss Tits.
00:27:52Look at me, look at me.
00:27:53Okay, look at me.
00:27:54Ready?
00:27:54I'm Little Miss Tits, right?
00:27:55I'm Little Miss Tits.
00:27:56I'm driving my Maz,
00:27:57Maz to Six
00:27:58thinking I'm freaking invisible.
00:27:59I don't even have
00:28:00my hands at Ten and Two.
00:28:01Look, I got one at Six
00:28:02and one surfing
00:28:03out the window.
00:28:05John Higgins,
00:28:06California Sober,
00:28:07and this is Gay Obama.
00:28:10Uh, Michelle!
00:28:12I'm gay!
00:28:16I'll take this one.
00:28:18Your Honor,
00:28:18I did an extreme
00:28:19hoe makeover.
00:28:21A makeover?
00:28:22What was the look
00:28:23you were going for?
00:28:24She came into my salon
00:28:25smelling like two devil
00:28:26that just ran a train
00:28:27on a falafel.
00:28:30Charles River in Boston?
00:28:32Inside the duck boat
00:28:33on a green screen.
00:28:35Always nice to be joined
00:28:37by a native Bostonian couple.
00:28:39A couple?
00:28:40Uh-uh!
00:28:41Yeah, we get how we look,
00:28:43but honey, we're not gay.
00:28:44After five kids,
00:28:45the way this thing
00:28:46downstairs is torn up,
00:28:47I wish I was gay.
00:28:49By the way,
00:28:50your dick's out of your pants.
00:28:52No, it's not.
00:28:56All right.
00:29:01This is the longest one
00:29:03of the seasons so far.
00:29:05Um, we'll go up
00:29:06to Lauren's office
00:29:08on 17 and pick,
00:29:10I don't know,
00:29:11like 12?
00:29:12Yeah.
00:29:13Um, yeah,
00:29:14and then that's how it goes.
00:29:19Often we have a really
00:29:20good table read
00:29:21where at least half,
00:29:22you know,
00:29:23maybe more,
00:29:23maybe two-thirds
00:29:24could work on the show.
00:29:26But it is a monarchy,
00:29:29and ultimately,
00:29:30it's Lauren who makes
00:29:31the decisions.
00:29:32If he really doesn't
00:29:32want to do something,
00:29:33he won't,
00:29:34and if he really does,
00:29:35we will.
00:29:39So, it's this waiting game
00:29:40where everyone sits around,
00:29:42nervous,
00:29:43waiting for, like,
00:29:44an email or a text about it.
00:29:48And we wait.
00:29:49And wait.
00:29:51I think it took me a while
00:29:52to get used to sitting still
00:29:54for that long,
00:29:55but now it's fine.
00:29:56I'll usually go downstairs
00:29:57and have an espresso martini
00:30:00while we wait for the pics.
00:30:06You know,
00:30:06it's very quiet
00:30:07for, like,
00:30:08an hour and a half,
00:30:09and then suddenly
00:30:10you see people
00:30:11walking along the hallway.
00:30:12You hear much more chatter.
00:30:15We got the pics.
00:30:16We got the pics.
00:30:17Oh, my God.
00:30:18We're putting on
00:30:19the marriage in the show.
00:30:22It's like the smoke
00:30:24from the Pope.
00:30:25Like, the pics are in.
00:30:26Congratulations.
00:30:28Yeah.
00:30:28You did it, little buddy.
00:30:31You did it.
00:30:33Once your sketch got picked,
00:30:34you would go around
00:30:36to the different departments
00:30:37because writers
00:30:38are their own producers,
00:30:40so you take the sketch
00:30:41from the thing you wrote
00:30:43and then you are responsible
00:30:45for every aspect of that thing.
00:30:46Heidi and Kira,
00:30:47come on down.
00:30:48Duck boats?
00:30:49Duck boats.
00:30:50So, like, Heidi and Io,
00:30:52they'll be facing out
00:30:53this way as if Trost is standing,
00:30:55like, backward,
00:30:57giving the tour.
00:30:58I think it's one of the reasons
00:30:59why you see a lot of
00:31:01SNL writers becoming directors
00:31:03and sort of multifaceted things
00:31:06because we're asked
00:31:06to do all this at that show.
00:31:08Kind of like this.
00:31:09Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:31:10Yeah, that's great.
00:31:11You are my French expert.
00:31:13Yeah, yeah.
00:31:14The person who creates the piece,
00:31:16they determine the set,
00:31:17the costumes.
00:31:18They're in charge of everything.
00:31:20That's the only way
00:31:21you get pure comedy
00:31:22that isn't maligned
00:31:25or edges rounded out
00:31:26or corners taken off.
00:31:27so it is truly a voice
00:31:29between the creator
00:31:31and the audience.
00:31:32You are fully in charge
00:31:34of three to four minutes
00:31:35of live network television.
00:31:38Totally in charge.
00:31:39NBC had nothing to say about it.
00:31:41Nothing.
00:31:42And when they did,
00:31:43we'd tell them, no.
00:31:44We're like 25.
00:31:46We'll go, we're doing it.
00:31:47I asked Lorne.
00:31:48I'm going to try
00:31:48to copy the textures
00:31:50because it's the only way
00:31:51we're going to make it convincing
00:31:52that it is there.
00:31:54And maybe one of these types
00:31:57of mics for Keenan,
00:31:58the driver.
00:31:59Sure.
00:32:00Okay.
00:32:01And at any point
00:32:02during the week,
00:32:03if a sketch fails,
00:32:04it's like people look
00:32:06to the writer.
00:32:07It's kind of like,
00:32:08well, you as the writer
00:32:09should be on it
00:32:10to know why this didn't happen.
00:32:12So it's definitely
00:32:13a lot of pressure.
00:32:14Sure.
00:32:15Thanks, guys.
00:32:16It is currently 11.21
00:32:19on Wednesday.
00:32:21The show is Saturday,
00:32:22you know,
00:32:23around this time.
00:32:24And so we have
00:32:25only a few days,
00:32:27so it's going to be,
00:32:27it's going to be tight.
00:32:46For every new writer,
00:32:48the quickest thing
00:32:49they learn is
00:32:51that it's not done
00:32:52when they press print.
00:32:55The whole process
00:32:56of SNL
00:32:57is such a writing
00:32:58and rewriting
00:32:59and rewriting process.
00:33:01You know,
00:33:02we write on Tuesday,
00:33:03we rewrite it
00:33:05on Thursday,
00:33:06Friday it's rewritten again,
00:33:08and on Saturday
00:33:09it's rewritten again.
00:33:12So in that very limited
00:33:15four-day window,
00:33:16it's rewritten
00:33:16at least four times.
00:33:23on Thursdays,
00:33:25that's our big rewrite day,
00:33:27rewriting all of the sketches
00:33:28that have been picked
00:33:29for dress rehearsal.
00:33:30A couple, like,
00:33:31full rewrites, too,
00:33:33I would say.
00:33:34All right.
00:33:35So all of the sketches
00:33:36get split up
00:33:36between the ninth floor
00:33:38writer's room
00:33:38and the 17th floor
00:33:39writer's room.
00:33:41And it's largely
00:33:42on the writer,
00:33:43whoever wrote the sketch,
00:33:44to be able to come
00:33:45to that rewrite table
00:33:46and say,
00:33:47here's what I'm looking for.
00:33:48I don't think this part worked.
00:33:50I don't think that part worked.
00:33:52I mean, I don't know.
00:33:53I truly, like,
00:33:54did laugh at it.
00:33:55I just can't tell
00:33:56if it's one of those things.
00:33:57Yeah, like,
00:33:57they did get some groans,
00:33:58so I feel like
00:33:59it probably wouldn't play.
00:34:00Yeah, some of the stuff
00:34:01after she starts doing it
00:34:03could be a lot shorter.
00:34:05Yeah, like,
00:34:06top of three
00:34:07is the same as top of four.
00:34:09Okay.
00:34:10The experience of
00:34:11writing a piece
00:34:12and then sitting
00:34:13in a rewrite room
00:34:14with all of your co-workers
00:34:15dissecting it
00:34:16can be a little daunting.
00:34:18You have to develop
00:34:19a thick skin,
00:34:20let's put it that way.
00:34:21I don't think everybody
00:34:21has a thick skin at first,
00:34:22but you have to develop one.
00:34:23What you learn
00:34:24when you are writing
00:34:26under those circumstances
00:34:28is that nothing is sacred.
00:34:30Nothing that you've written
00:34:32is that good
00:34:33that it can't be changed
00:34:35if need be.
00:34:38I have to say,
00:34:39as head writer,
00:34:41I felt like I came in
00:34:42from Chicago
00:34:42and I was, like,
00:34:43ready to fight whoever.
00:34:45But the rewrite tables
00:34:46were tough.
00:34:48They were grouchy.
00:34:49People would take
00:34:50the rundown of the show
00:34:51and just go sketch by sketch
00:34:53and, like, make fun of it,
00:34:54make fun of the title
00:34:55that's, like,
00:34:56goof on it, goof on it,
00:34:57goof on it.
00:34:57Like, you would leave the room
00:34:59fully knowing
00:35:00that that writer's room
00:35:01was, like, taking a shit
00:35:02on it while you were gone.
00:35:03and it just was kind of
00:35:05the way it was.
00:35:07And I don't know
00:35:08if it's the same anymore.
00:35:10And if it's not,
00:35:12maybe it should get
00:35:13that way again a little bit.
00:35:15I think it's good.
00:35:18I do think that there was
00:35:20some nice, like, symmetry
00:35:22to there being
00:35:23three secrets.
00:35:24Like, do we have any, like,
00:35:26weird things she could confess?
00:35:28She's been selling
00:35:29jewel pods in the bathroom.
00:35:32My dad is an astronaut.
00:35:34I've seen over 20
00:35:35R-rated movies.
00:35:38Sometimes you just
00:35:40gotta keep working it
00:35:41and working it
00:35:42and working it
00:35:42until it's what
00:35:43you want it to be.
00:35:44It's very precise.
00:35:46There's a rhythm,
00:35:47a musical rhythm
00:35:48to jokes.
00:35:49You know,
00:35:50you can count your syllables.
00:35:51It's gotta be exact.
00:35:54Mitchell, remind everyone
00:35:56of our number.
00:35:57Our number is
00:36:001672555
00:36:030136.
00:36:03But, Serena,
00:36:04there's no way
00:36:05to create a catchy jingle
00:36:06with a number like that.
00:36:08That's where you're wrong.
00:36:09I remember
00:36:09last season
00:36:10James Austin Johnson
00:36:11and Andrew Dismukes,
00:36:13they have, like,
00:36:13their soul booth,
00:36:14flag, jingle pitch guys.
00:36:15We are a soul booth.
00:36:17And they're here to save us.
00:36:20Worked out a few demos
00:36:21for y'all.
00:36:21They played
00:36:22two musicians
00:36:23pitching a jingle
00:36:24to a company
00:36:25and it was just
00:36:27gonna be their phone number
00:36:28and they sing it
00:36:29in this ridiculous,
00:36:30you know,
00:36:30soulful way.
00:36:32875772.
00:36:33And so,
00:36:34I was at that rewrite table
00:36:36and when I tell you
00:36:37we spent, like,
00:36:3930 to 45 minutes
00:36:40straight up
00:36:40having to figure out
00:36:41the number.
00:36:42We had a long discussion
00:36:43about which numbers
00:36:44were the funniest.
00:36:46You know,
00:36:467, 3,
00:36:47what's best here?
00:36:483, 6, 0, 0, 5, 5,
00:36:50but, like,
00:36:50what is the funniest
00:36:52take on a number?
00:36:53Is it better to land
00:36:53on a 3
00:36:55and, uh,
00:36:56you know,
00:36:56you run out of runway
00:36:58after a little while
00:36:59talking about that,
00:37:00but it,
00:37:01at the same time,
00:37:02it does matter.
00:37:03It actually really does.
00:37:14One more time,
00:37:15that feels so good.
00:37:20So,
00:37:26what do you think?
00:37:29If you were to walk
00:37:30past us that day,
00:37:31you were like,
00:37:32what is going on
00:37:33at S&A?
00:37:33Are they okay?
00:37:41Silly addict.
00:37:43Alcohol's not a drug.
00:37:44It's sold in stores.
00:37:49Okay.
00:37:50We got a note
00:37:51from Betsy on it.
00:37:53Excuse me?
00:37:55Glorifying drugs.
00:37:57What the fuck?
00:37:59So,
00:37:59we just,
00:38:00oh, shit.
00:38:01There's a person
00:38:02named Betsy Torres
00:38:03who's our censor
00:38:05and her job
00:38:07is to read
00:38:08and listen
00:38:09to all the sketches
00:38:09that read through
00:38:10and kind of flag
00:38:11and kind of flag
00:38:12anything that could be
00:38:13a problem
00:38:13for the network
00:38:14or advertisers
00:38:16or anything like that.
00:38:19as the SNL standards executive.
00:38:22As the SNL standards executive,
00:38:23I need to review content
00:38:26for everything.
00:38:28What's kind of problematic,
00:38:30what seems over the top.
00:38:32Delete dick.
00:38:33Delete dick.
00:38:35Wait, what was it?
00:38:36Minimize gay mentions
00:38:37and delete dick.
00:38:39We have tonnage concerns
00:38:40regarding language.
00:38:42Gay bitch,
00:38:42ass balls,
00:38:43dump, etc.
00:38:44There was a lot of these,
00:38:46yes.
00:38:47I try to make sure
00:38:49that we're not having,
00:38:51like,
00:38:5220 bitches
00:38:53or asses
00:38:54in one show
00:38:55that we kind of
00:38:56figure out
00:38:57that we've got to,
00:38:58you know,
00:38:59tone it down.
00:39:00I think we have
00:39:01a good working relationship
00:39:02for as far,
00:39:02as good as people
00:39:03who yell at each other
00:39:04sometimes can have.
00:39:06Some writers
00:39:07don't want to change
00:39:08what they've written
00:39:09and some of them
00:39:11are pissed off at me.
00:39:13But it's not personal,
00:39:15it's professional.
00:39:16Her job is
00:39:17to kind of,
00:39:18to kind of have
00:39:19a dirty mind
00:39:21where it's like,
00:39:22you know,
00:39:23looking for that stuff
00:39:24and sometimes
00:39:25she'll find it
00:39:26when it's not there
00:39:26and you'll be like,
00:39:27Betsy,
00:39:28you think we're describing
00:39:29like some sex act here?
00:39:30No, we're not.
00:39:31We're just literally saying
00:39:33like a glazed donut.
00:39:34That's it.
00:39:35It's, we're not,
00:39:36you know.
00:39:36Every once in a while
00:39:37with a sensor sometimes
00:39:39we put in something
00:39:40that was,
00:39:42we knew they'd have to cut
00:39:43in order to get something
00:39:45that we were afraid
00:39:46they would cut.
00:39:47So we were actually
00:39:50really aiming
00:39:51at this target
00:39:52but we give them
00:39:53this target
00:39:55and they go like,
00:39:56you can't do that.
00:39:57And then we go,
00:39:58what do you mean?
00:39:59Argue, argue, argue, argue.
00:40:01Okay.
00:40:02But can we do that?
00:40:03Oh yeah.
00:40:04My human trick
00:40:05I used to do
00:40:06in the writer's room
00:40:07is just bleep myself out
00:40:08so I'll show you my trick.
00:40:11Listen,
00:40:12I know that
00:40:13some people loved SNL,
00:40:15they hated SNL
00:40:16and, you know,
00:40:18if you hated it,
00:40:19you can...
00:40:24That was me bleeping myself.
00:40:49All right.
00:40:51There you go.
00:40:52On Fridays,
00:40:54sets are built.
00:40:56That's kind of miraculous,
00:40:57the way those sets go up
00:40:58so quickly.
00:40:59They're putting it up
00:41:01and doing the rough blocking
00:41:02and starting to mount the show.
00:41:04Here's panel six.
00:41:07All right, here we go.
00:41:08Stand by.
00:41:09One.
00:41:21This is the first time
00:41:22you're hearing people
00:41:23stand and say line.
00:41:24So that first blocking time
00:41:27becomes very important.
00:41:32Blocking is when you figure out
00:41:34where your shots are going to be
00:41:35and, you know,
00:41:36where the cast are going to stand,
00:41:38where their marks are.
00:41:39I mean, also,
00:41:40you could go,
00:41:41see what I mean?
00:41:42And then, like,
00:41:43Devin, you could be like,
00:41:44sit.
00:41:44So then it's like this?
00:41:46Yeah.
00:41:47And every step along the way
00:41:49was another step
00:41:50in the writing process.
00:41:52What if he was like,
00:41:53herbal chamomile.
00:41:54I'm sorry,
00:41:55I couldn't resist.
00:41:55I used to do stand-up.
00:41:57Like, switch.
00:41:59Yep.
00:42:00Herbal or chamomile.
00:42:01I'm sorry,
00:42:02I couldn't resist.
00:42:02I used to do stand-up.
00:42:03That's great.
00:42:03Okay, we'll see how that goes.
00:42:05At Saturday Night Live,
00:42:06in addition to writing the sketches,
00:42:08you also give notes
00:42:10to the performers.
00:42:11Move over the top again.
00:42:12Move over the top.
00:42:13And the hosts
00:42:14are sometimes
00:42:15Oscar award-winning actors.
00:42:18It can be a weird dynamic
00:42:19having, like,
00:42:20some, like,
00:42:2125-year-old kid
00:42:22be like,
00:42:23dude,
00:42:23you're not doing it right.
00:42:24Yeah.
00:42:27Oh, the host is De Niro
00:42:28and I have to go
00:42:29tell them
00:42:30an acting note?
00:42:32And you just are like,
00:42:34I can't believe
00:42:35I'm sitting here
00:42:35talking to you about this,
00:42:36you know?
00:42:39Just all these
00:42:40famous
00:42:41people.
00:42:51If you come in
00:42:52and you're new
00:42:53to all of it,
00:42:55it's fucking terrifying.
00:42:58I think,
00:42:59possibly,
00:42:59my first week
00:43:00as a writer,
00:43:01Sylvester Stallone
00:43:02was the host
00:43:03and the note
00:43:04came back
00:43:04and was like,
00:43:05tell him he needs
00:43:05to enunciate more.
00:43:07We can't understand him.
00:43:08So how do you think
00:43:09I'm doing?
00:43:10I mean,
00:43:11you're sticking up
00:43:12the joy truck!
00:43:13And then the writer
00:43:14I was working with
00:43:15was more experienced.
00:43:16He was like,
00:43:16okay,
00:43:16you go do it.
00:43:17And sometimes
00:43:17you'd see these actors
00:43:18with the shades
00:43:20go down on their eyes
00:43:21and like,
00:43:21don't give me
00:43:22a fucking line reading.
00:43:23But it's a great
00:43:24trial by fire.
00:43:26Mr. Stallone
00:43:26was very nice about it.
00:43:27Clearly not the first time
00:43:29in his life
00:43:29he had received that note.
00:43:30He was like,
00:43:31okay,
00:43:31yeah.
00:43:32You can't understand me,
00:43:33I got it.
00:43:34He was great at it.
00:43:35He killed it.
00:43:36All right,
00:43:37we're going to
00:43:37clean it up now.
00:43:39Can you show me
00:43:39a three shot
00:43:40with Chloe in the middle?
00:43:42The control room
00:43:43is where you're
00:43:44seeing for the first time
00:43:45what people
00:43:45are going to be
00:43:46seeing at home.
00:43:47You're not experiencing
00:43:48it like a play.
00:43:49Okay,
00:43:50can you please
00:43:50let me do the tour?
00:43:54I think a little bit faster.
00:43:56You want it a little faster?
00:43:57Yeah, just a little bit.
00:43:59Yeah, yeah.
00:43:59Okay.
00:44:01That's the scariest part.
00:44:03You're giving notes
00:44:04to a control room
00:44:07often,
00:44:08speaking for myself,
00:44:09poorly
00:44:09in that I didn't,
00:44:10I couldn't articulate
00:44:11always
00:44:12how I wanted
00:44:14us to cut
00:44:15from this camera
00:44:16to that camera
00:44:16so I'd have to,
00:44:17you know,
00:44:17be like,
00:44:17you know that thing
00:44:18where it's like,
00:44:19uh,
00:44:20like,
00:44:20huh,
00:44:20what?
00:44:21Like,
00:44:21you know,
00:44:21just trying to like,
00:44:23to being so untechnical
00:44:24and so imprecise
00:44:25trying to
00:44:26explain something
00:44:27to these professionals.
00:44:32On Friday,
00:44:33I would typically
00:44:33just try to hide
00:44:36as much as I could
00:44:37from,
00:44:37uh,
00:44:38from authority figures.
00:44:40I've got really good
00:44:41at knowing
00:44:41which bathrooms,
00:44:43um,
00:44:43I had access to.
00:44:45and I'd go in there
00:44:46five to ten times a day
00:44:47and ignore
00:44:49the chatter
00:44:49in the hallway
00:44:50about the screwed up
00:44:52blocking in my sketch
00:44:53and hope that other people
00:44:54would fix the,
00:44:54the problems.
00:44:56That was sort of
00:44:57my Friday schedule.
00:45:02Hey.
00:45:02Hey, how's it going?
00:45:03What's up?
00:45:03How are you?
00:45:04You want to see
00:45:04your brain thing?
00:45:06Yes.
00:45:09Oh,
00:45:09that looks great.
00:45:10I'm still going to
00:45:11paint it all up
00:45:11and bloody it on the sides.
00:45:13Okay.
00:45:14Right?
00:45:14You like it?
00:45:15Yeah.
00:45:15You want it bigger than that?
00:45:17Can you do it a little bigger?
00:45:18Yeah.
00:45:18I think it'll be...
00:45:20How about we go ahead?
00:45:21Like,
00:45:22one that's like,
00:45:22this part can be like,
00:45:24probably the size of this.
00:45:25I'm still learning
00:45:27my style,
00:45:28but it tends to be
00:45:29really crazy stuff.
00:45:30Anything with like,
00:45:31a special effect.
00:45:32Because they told me
00:45:33not to write two people
00:45:34just standing around.
00:45:36So we'll make one more
00:45:37that's a little bigger
00:45:38and we'll see which one
00:45:39fits better.
00:45:39But basically that same
00:45:40kind of style.
00:45:41Yeah,
00:45:41that looks great.
00:45:42I just want it to be
00:45:43like,
00:45:43read on camera.
00:45:44Yeah.
00:45:44So we'll make it
00:45:45even twice as big.
00:45:46All right.
00:45:46Thank you.
00:45:47Awesome.
00:45:48Thank you.
00:45:49Thank you.
00:45:50Usually we deal
00:45:50with the writers.
00:45:51They'll come up
00:45:51with the idea
00:45:52and they'll say,
00:45:52okay,
00:45:53we want to do this,
00:45:54we want to do this,
00:45:54we want to do this.
00:45:56I think in my 30 years
00:45:57I can count on one hand
00:45:58how many times I've said,
00:45:59no,
00:45:59I can't do it.
00:46:00And this is all
00:46:01just some of the stuff
00:46:02that we've built
00:46:02over the,
00:46:03in my 30 year tenure.
00:46:05Kenan's head
00:46:06that rotated on a drill.
00:46:10And then the dragon
00:46:11we had to build
00:46:12when we did
00:46:13a Game of Thrones sketch
00:46:14and we had one night
00:46:15to build a dragon.
00:46:16And I keep
00:46:17all my severed heads
00:46:18because they'll call me
00:46:20that morning and say,
00:46:21you don't have
00:46:22a Mikey Day severed head.
00:46:24You know,
00:46:24just happen to have
00:46:24a Mikey Day severed head
00:46:25just laying around.
00:46:27You never know
00:46:27when they need it.
00:46:29And unfortunately,
00:46:30a lot of this stuff
00:46:30gets cut.
00:46:32The War Machine suit
00:46:33got cut,
00:46:35Shape of Water
00:46:35got cut.
00:46:36But we did it
00:46:37for dress,
00:46:38but it didn't do
00:46:39well at dress
00:46:40so then they cut
00:46:40the sketch.
00:46:41So all that work,
00:46:43two days worth of work
00:46:44and then the sketch
00:46:45gets cut.
00:47:02Hi, Martin.
00:47:12So we have our studio
00:47:15here at 8H
00:47:16where all the live
00:47:17show happens
00:47:17and then we got
00:47:19a second studio
00:47:20on the Upper West Side
00:47:22and that's where we shoot
00:47:23most of our pre-tapes now.
00:47:25We shoot the tapes
00:47:26usually on Friday morning,
00:47:29sometimes Friday night
00:47:30and then you're editing
00:47:31all day, Saturday,
00:47:33sometimes truly right up
00:47:35till it airs.
00:47:37The director's up there
00:47:38working on it
00:47:40and like I just looked
00:47:41at my phone
00:47:42and I just had like
00:47:42six missed calls
00:47:43from him so
00:47:45probably something good
00:47:46is going on.
00:47:48Hi, guys.
00:47:50I know.
00:47:51And if we don't get
00:47:52out of here soon,
00:47:53I'm gonna want to hook up.
00:47:54I know.
00:47:55and if we don't get
00:47:56out of here soon,
00:47:56I'm gonna want to hook up.
00:47:58I know.
00:47:59And if we don't get
00:47:59out of here soon,
00:48:00I'm gonna want to hook up.
00:48:00I like the first one better
00:48:02but the second one
00:48:03is like maybe clearer.
00:48:04I was just gonna slam
00:48:05it right in to hook up
00:48:06with each other.
00:48:07Because they're saying
00:48:08the same thing
00:48:08over and over again?
00:48:09That's funny.
00:48:10You don't like that?
00:48:11No.
00:48:12You want me to write
00:48:13them saying something
00:48:13different each time?
00:48:14In the same room,
00:48:15two of them.
00:48:17No one here
00:48:18wants to hook up.
00:48:19We are a total stranger.
00:48:20We've been here
00:48:21for like two minutes.
00:48:22I like that thing
00:48:23of Andrew being like
00:48:24we've only been in here
00:48:25for two minutes.
00:48:26We've been in here
00:48:26for like two minutes.
00:48:28We've been in here
00:48:29for like two minutes.
00:48:31Another one?
00:48:32We've been in here
00:48:33for like two minutes.
00:48:34Let's try maybe that one.
00:48:36This feels like lighter.
00:48:39I'd be late
00:48:39picking my kid up from school.
00:48:40Ugh,
00:48:40I already have to pee.
00:48:42I know.
00:48:43And if we don't get
00:48:44out of here soon,
00:48:44I'm gonna want to hook up.
00:48:45Yeah,
00:48:46I can be stuck in here
00:48:46or else I'm gonna
00:48:47want to hook up too.
00:48:52Can I just,
00:48:52can I just look
00:48:53at that ending?
00:48:54it was nice.
00:49:08I like that.
00:49:09I feel like ending
00:49:09on the performance
00:49:10is nice.
00:49:11Cool.
00:49:11Also because this was
00:49:13at 3 in the morning
00:49:15and we got it.
00:49:16Here we go.
00:49:20We're getting ready
00:49:21to run through
00:49:21the whole show
00:49:22starting at 12.30
00:49:24and then you're making
00:49:25last minute changes
00:49:26and there's a lot of chaos.
00:49:28All right,
00:49:28here we go.
00:49:30All right,
00:49:31let's stand by.
00:49:33Uh,
00:49:34wait,
00:49:35just from the very top?
00:49:38Saturday's the first time
00:49:39we're seeing our sketch
00:49:42produced with
00:49:42with a finished set
00:49:44and with costumes
00:49:45and wigs
00:49:45and sound.
00:49:46Yeah, look,
00:49:48he just bought me this.
00:49:49Okay, and
00:49:50how did you guys meet?
00:49:54Pets.
00:49:55Okay,
00:49:56all right,
00:49:56thank you so much.
00:49:58I don't know.
00:49:59Yeah, I don't know
00:50:00that it's working.
00:50:01You're trying to
00:50:02cut jokes that don't work,
00:50:04write new, better jokes
00:50:06and make sure
00:50:07all the angles
00:50:08and the coverage
00:50:09are what you want
00:50:10people at home
00:50:10to be seeing.
00:50:11so,
00:50:11so,
00:50:12your honor,
00:50:13look at this.
00:50:14Take the bonnet off,
00:50:15whatever.
00:50:16Maybe not take the bonnet off.
00:50:17On 25,
00:50:18when we see
00:50:19Ayo's brain
00:50:20like stay on it
00:50:21just a beat longer.
00:50:23So Jenna,
00:50:24know her Ayo,
00:50:25when she exposes
00:50:26her brain,
00:50:27can she keep
00:50:28her head turned
00:50:29a little bit longer?
00:50:30Yeah.
00:50:31Wait,
00:50:31hold on one second.
00:50:32Five frame up.
00:50:34Ease in.
00:50:34This versus this.
00:50:36Yeah.
00:50:37This?
00:50:40All the writers
00:50:41are like little ducks
00:50:43and you see them
00:50:44above the surface
00:50:44and you think
00:50:45they're just gliding
00:50:46and they're just
00:50:46sort of like expressionless
00:50:47but like if you look
00:50:48under the water
00:50:48their feet are going
00:50:49like this.
00:50:51That's kind of the vibe
00:50:52like you just kind of
00:50:54keep it cool
00:50:55but you freak it out.
00:50:59Captain,
00:50:59Peter Pan's coming.
00:51:00Your luck's run out,
00:51:02Peter Pan.
00:51:02I remember
00:51:03my first season
00:51:04at SNL
00:51:05I wrote a Peter Pan sketch
00:51:09and Lauren shouted at me
00:51:11you can see the wires
00:51:13and I thought
00:51:14he was speaking
00:51:16metaphorically
00:51:16about the script
00:51:17I had written.
00:51:18So I turned to John Lutz
00:51:19and I said
00:51:20what does that mean
00:51:21that he can see the wires?
00:51:23Does he think
00:51:24the sketch is derivative
00:51:25and formulaic?
00:51:27And he said
00:51:27I think it means
00:51:28that he can see the wires
00:51:30like the Peter Pan wires.
00:51:33Shoot him!
00:51:34Shoot him!
00:51:37I'd rather be a boy
00:51:39than a monkey old man!
00:51:40Hey Captain Hook!
00:51:42Catch me on your cat!
00:51:45The sketch by the way
00:51:46was derivative
00:51:47and formulaic
00:51:48but
00:51:50it was too late
00:51:51to fix that aspect of it.
00:51:54Alright, what's that bye?
00:51:55Saturday run through
00:51:57is like the last day
00:51:58you practice D-Day
00:51:59before actual D-Day.
00:52:02you know
00:52:02like alright everybody
00:52:03we're going to be on the boats
00:52:04remember
00:52:04we're like yeah
00:52:05we're going to be on the boats
00:52:06and then we're going to open the boats
00:52:06yeah yeah yeah
00:52:07the boats are going to open
00:52:07they're going to run on the beach
00:52:08and you're like okay
00:52:09we're going to run on the beach
00:52:09okay yeah
00:52:10everything's good
00:52:10and then dress
00:52:12is the actual D-Day.
00:52:13What do we do?
00:52:14Molly,
00:52:15T-D,
00:52:16Charles,
00:52:17where do you go from the top?
00:52:19For dress rehearsal
00:52:21everybody's kind of like
00:52:23talking to hair
00:52:25talking to costumes
00:52:27looking at the set
00:52:28making new changes
00:52:30if they need to
00:52:30to something
00:52:31so people are pretty much locked in
00:52:33because now it's game time.
00:52:47and from 8 to 10 p.m.
00:52:49we do the full dress rehearsal
00:52:51in front of the live audience
00:52:53and based on their reactions
00:52:55Lauren decides
00:52:56the order of the sketches
00:52:57and which sketches are cut.
00:53:02the brutal fairness
00:53:04of the process
00:53:05kind of separates
00:53:06the wheat from the chaff
00:53:07and the dress audience
00:53:08tells you the truth.
00:53:13Michael McCoy!
00:53:18Welcome to SNL
00:53:20season 49 dress rehearsal
00:53:21are you guys excited?
00:53:25You ever been on TV before?
00:53:28that shit's not going to change tonight
00:53:29this dress rehearsal
00:53:34this show
00:53:34is longer than the show
00:53:36that you would see on TV
00:53:37this is the show
00:53:38that determines the show
00:53:39everything you're about to see
00:53:40has never been seen before
00:53:42and some of that shit
00:53:42will never be seen again
00:53:45are you ready to go?
00:53:51come on
00:53:51come on
00:53:52come on
00:53:53come on
00:53:53come on
00:53:53come on
00:53:53come on
00:53:54come on
00:53:54come on
00:53:54come on
00:53:54come on
00:53:56come on
00:53:57come on
00:53:58come on
00:54:00so before your sketch
00:54:02people kind of
00:54:03will go down
00:54:04maybe one or two sketches early
00:54:06and hang out
00:54:08outside the studio doors
00:54:09and watch the feed
00:54:10and it's like kind of being
00:54:12like on the on deck circle
00:54:14like you know you're about
00:54:15to step up
00:54:16to the plate
00:54:18I mean I've been here
00:54:19ten years
00:54:19I still get nervous
00:54:29so during dress
00:54:31well if your sketch is up
00:54:33you will go and sit with
00:54:35Lauren under the bleachers
00:54:36where he sits during dress rehearsal
00:54:38one of the things that you learn
00:54:39really early as an SNL writer
00:54:41is that nobody really knows
00:54:43with a hundred percent certainty
00:54:44what is going to work
00:54:45on Saturday night
00:54:46you know nobody knows SNL better than Lauren
00:54:49and Lauren has built into his process
00:54:51an extra half an hour of material every week
00:54:55because he's self-aware enough to know
00:54:57that not even he knows what's going to work
00:55:00to sit down next to Lauren Michaels
00:55:02what this man means for comedy
00:55:04and know that he's going to watch your thing
00:55:07and might have not great things to say to you about it
00:55:11is a terrifying prospect
00:55:13it's pretty nerve-wracking
00:55:14and sometimes he'll turn and say things to you like
00:55:17are you proud of this one
00:55:19you know
00:55:20which is pretty tough
00:55:24so you just sit there and go
00:55:26Jesus
00:55:28let them understand this sketch
00:55:30and let it go good
00:55:31like you're honestly praying
00:55:33you're rooting for the audience to laugh at this joke
00:55:36laugh at that joke
00:55:37so my sketch will get into the live show
00:55:40and you can't laugh yourself
00:55:44because he knows that trick
00:55:45and so there's somehow the body language
00:55:49I experienced under the bleachers going well
00:55:56and I've also experienced under the bleachers
00:55:59you know
00:56:00going really bad
00:56:02and I always whenever
00:56:03whenever the latter happens
00:56:04I always want
00:56:05I always kind of want to shoot a look to him
00:56:07and just be like
00:56:08we really thought it was funny
00:56:10you know
00:56:10we really thought it was funny
00:56:12we
00:56:13you know
00:56:13not just me
00:56:25and that's how it's done
00:56:32so between dress and air
00:56:34Lorne, Steve Higgins, the host, the producers
00:56:38they go upstairs to Lorne's office
00:56:41and they pick the show
00:56:42everybody's going to find out their fate
00:56:45by 11.30
00:56:47what got picked and what didn't
00:56:50might be a bloodbath
00:56:51tonight
00:56:53from 10pm to 10.45pm
00:56:56was often the most stressful 45 minutes of the week
00:57:00because you're just kind of waiting again for pics
00:57:03I still have nightmares about the stress of Saturday night
00:57:06I'm sometimes naked although
00:57:08it varies
00:57:09the degree to which I'm clothed
00:57:11and Lorne is sometimes in the background inexplicably riding a horse
00:57:23that was hilarious
00:57:25that was so good
00:57:29so at about 10.30
00:57:31we'll all go meet in the studio
00:57:36and they will wheel in a board
00:57:38with note cards of the sketches up
00:57:40and that's the first time that we find out
00:57:43the full running order of the show
00:57:44and what's cut
00:57:46so that's kind of what we're getting ready for
00:57:49watch your backs
00:57:50watch your backs, your backs
00:57:52watch your backs, please
00:57:55there we go
00:57:58crap
00:57:59no, no, no, no, no, no
00:58:02duck boat
00:58:04oh
00:58:05damn
00:58:08all right
00:58:09here we are
00:58:12this set is cleaner
00:58:14but if it can move a little faster
00:58:16it'll all be better
00:58:20watch your backs, please
00:58:23which one is this for?
00:58:25it's, uh, they just cut the duck boat tour
00:58:28the boat is out of here
00:58:30no one sets out to write a bad sketch
00:58:32sometimes it just happens
00:58:34and, you know, you've worked as hard as you can
00:58:36but something about the idea is just not clicking
00:58:40and so sometimes when you see it's cut
00:58:42it's like
00:58:42whew
00:58:44okay
00:58:45good
00:58:45that I'm glad that's not gonna see the light of day
00:58:48and then sometimes it is
00:58:50it's devastating
00:58:52you know, there's a million reasons things get cut
00:58:55but, you know, it doesn't make it any less painful
00:58:57when you're like
00:58:58well, there goes my week
00:58:59all that
00:59:00all that work
00:59:02as a writer, I'm a little bit more like
00:59:05I, I did the best I could
00:59:06and I either got the piece where I needed to
00:59:09or I didn't
00:59:10and it is what it is
00:59:11it didn't get the laughs it needed to
00:59:12the
00:59:13it crushed at table
00:59:14and when it got in front of dress
00:59:16they just didn't care
00:59:18or whatever
00:59:20things getting cut still hurt
00:59:22I still think about it
00:59:23I still think about how
00:59:24I could have improved it
00:59:25or how things could have gone differently
00:59:29I just learned not to attach my ego to it as much
00:59:33all right
00:59:33you'll feel better if the show is really good
00:59:36and people are talking to you about it
00:59:38and
00:59:38you don't have to say
00:59:39explain anything
00:59:43stands on its own
00:59:44all right
00:59:45I'll see you out there
00:59:51so if we just cut like four jokes
00:59:54I mean four lines
00:59:57for the sketches that are in the show
00:59:58people are scrambling to show changes to cast
01:00:01to make sure the cue cards are right
01:00:02to make sure the director knows
01:00:03just to make sure all the bases are covered
01:00:05before we go to air
01:00:06we have 45 minutes
01:00:13we have another ego line
01:00:15after this Kenan order
01:00:16but it's going to be off cam
01:00:17it's fucking terrifying
01:00:20going up and down the stairs
01:00:21you know nine to eight
01:00:22going around to the elevator
01:00:24turning around the other thing
01:00:25trying to find
01:00:25to give notes
01:00:27to cue cards
01:00:28all right get rid of card nine
01:00:31okay
01:00:31get rid of the bottom line
01:00:33that says you're scaring
01:00:34it's always an absolute panic
01:00:38and you're just thinking
01:00:39there's no way this is going to go smoothly
01:00:4115 minutes from now
01:00:4215 to the floor
01:00:4415 back 15 back
01:00:45the fact that it's a live show
01:00:46is unbelievable pressure
01:00:50just the tension level
01:00:52destroyed any fun
01:00:54that I might feel
01:00:58minute 30 back
01:00:5920 to the team
01:01:00minute 25
01:01:01125 back
01:01:21what was very very scary to me
01:01:24was watching the audience
01:01:26for the live show
01:01:27queued up outside of 8H
01:01:30and now they're playing music
01:01:34and you go okay
01:01:37this is the moment
01:01:38this is the moment
01:01:39okay now it's for real
01:01:40clear set please
01:01:42clear set
01:01:43stand by
01:01:44B
01:01:44stand by
01:01:4810 seconds
01:01:52stand by guys
01:01:53stand by BT11
01:01:54stand by camera 5
01:01:565
01:01:564
01:01:573
01:01:582
01:01:591
01:02:00hit it
01:02:01track it
01:02:05oh it's on
01:02:09when we watch
01:02:11the air show
01:02:12in the writers room
01:02:15sometimes I feel
01:02:15very celebratory
01:02:17sometimes I feel
01:02:18a little bit like
01:02:19a dog with my tail
01:02:20between my legs
01:02:22but
01:02:24usually my biggest
01:02:25feeling is relief
01:02:27at that point
01:02:28we're all eating pizza
01:02:29and getting drunk
01:02:29because
01:02:30what's been picked
01:02:32has been picked
01:02:32and what has been made
01:02:33has been made
01:02:34and it's being sent
01:02:35out to the world
01:02:38working here
01:02:39is like
01:02:40tough
01:02:41you know
01:02:42but then on the other
01:02:43side of that
01:02:44when I have a good week
01:02:45that is like
01:02:46millions of people
01:02:48like
01:02:50are laughing
01:02:51you know
01:02:51so
01:02:52it's a really
01:02:53scary trade off
01:03:00you know
01:03:00look
01:03:01writing comedy
01:03:04is fun
01:03:05when you're
01:03:05with other people
01:03:06there's a group
01:03:07thing that happens
01:03:09there's a synergy
01:03:10it's a dinner party
01:03:20you definitely feel
01:03:21like you're part
01:03:22of
01:03:22this amazing
01:03:24iconic
01:03:27club
01:03:29I mean
01:03:29it's an institution
01:03:32it's just an
01:03:33American institution
01:03:34it could go on
01:03:35for another 200 years
01:03:36it's hard to explain
01:03:39what it is
01:03:41you know
01:03:41that's why
01:03:42it's such a miracle
01:03:43to have been
01:03:44one of those writers
01:03:46it's just
01:03:47like nothing else
01:03:48I will ever live
01:03:49in my life
01:03:50writing comedy
01:03:52and being funny
01:03:53is really
01:03:54often times
01:03:54admitting you're
01:03:55wrong
01:03:56or you're
01:03:57fallible
01:03:57and
01:03:59it's really
01:04:00important to remind
01:04:03everybody
01:04:04to laugh
01:04:05at
01:04:06the human condition
01:04:08and the choices
01:04:09we make
01:04:09and the way
01:04:10in which we're
01:04:11fucked up
01:04:13I'm talking to you
01:04:14I'm talking to you
01:04:44and I guess
01:04:44I'll see you
01:04:44Sous-titrage FR ?
Comments