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Tag: fred armisen
All of Hollywood is grieving the beloved Diane Keaton
Come on, we all know there’s only one story that matters today. 🧨
Happy Monday, let’s scream into the void together.
Kristen Wiig receives a star-studded induction into ‘Saturday Night Live’s’ Five-Timer’s Club
Saturday Night Live
Kristen Wiig & Raye
April 6, 2024
Kristen Wiig is arguably one of Saturday Night Live‘s greatest former cast members — which is why it is no surprise that she is one of only five cast members who has hosted enough times to be inducted into the Five-Timers Club. (Can you name the other four?)
But despite her greatness as a cast member and her success off the show, Wiig has not had the most successful run with hosting the show. In 2016, I said the episode “was the equivalent of putting on an old sweatshirt: comfortable, familiar and warm, but not something you’ll remember even two days from now”; in May 2020 — which was in the middle of the pandemic and one of those difficult at-home episodes — Wiig only appeared in two bits, one of which was a “weird-and-not-weird-in-a-funny-way-just-weird monologue”; and in December 2020, I found the material to be “mediocre” and gave it a B-. (I don’t have her first episode from 2013 here in the Foolish archives, unfortunately.)
So I am happy to report that for this momentous occasion, the writers gave Wiig some good material to work with and supported her with a bevy of superstars, and as a result, Wiig finally hosted the Saturday Night Live episode that her talents deserved.
Bad Bunny hosts el primer bilingual ‘Saturday Night Live’
Saturday Night Live
Bad Bunny
October 21, 2023
Puerto Rican rapper and singer, Bad Bunny (also known as Benito Ocasio), presented the writers of Saturday Night Live an unusual test last night: English is not the host and musical guest’s first language, and, based on last night’s performance, he’s not particularly a strong English-speaker. Lest you think I’m being insulting to Mr. Bunny, let me say right now that I have consistently pointed out that hosting a live comedy show as a non-comedian would be terrifying for anyone. So I have nothing but respect for this Spanish-speaking singer as he chose to go out on the Studio 8H stage and host in another language.
But as I started to say: the language thing was a challenge. The writers needed to come up with ways to write Bad Bunny into sketches that would not embarrass him or be too dialogue-heavy that he wouldn’t be able to relax and have fun with it. And for the most part, they came up with some very clever workarounds: one sketch is entirely in Spanish — and it works; they set another sketch entirely in the world of telenovelas; and they brought out Pedro Pascal a couple of times to assist.
Not all of the bits worked: the more Bad Bunny was required to speak in English, the more uncomfortable he appeared and the more it went off the rails. That said, ultimately it was a more successful episode than last week’s premiere, in large part because the writers were facing a unique challenge, one that forced them to not be lazy lest they make the host look bad.
Continue reading “Bad Bunny hosts el primer bilingual ‘Saturday Night Live’”
Bust out your best chicken dance, ‘Arrested Development’ is returning to Netflix
Jenna Ortega brings her dark charms to ‘Saturday Night Live’
Saturday Night Live
Jenna Ortega & The 1975
March 11, 2023
By now you know who Jenna Ortega is. Or … maybe you don’t. My own husband came into the bathroom this morning to complain to me that his Twitter feed had been taken over by “someone named Jennie Ortega” and he didn’t understand why. For my husband, and those of you like him, Jenna Ortega is the star of Netflix’s big hit Wednesday; she is starring in Scream 6 which just came out; and before that she had roles in everything from You to Jane the Virgin to Elena of Avalor. As your Twitter feed might demonstrate, Ortega is kinda having a moment with her Aubrey Plaza-esque goth vibes.
But Ortega wants people to know that she does have a sense of humor despite all the darkness, and she demonstrated as much in a middle-of-the-road episode of Saturday Night Live. The episode wasn’t bad, per se, it just wasn’t particularly memorable or outstanding — with the exception of one brilliant sketch that stole the night, and maybe the season.
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Sure, the country is a hellscape, but hey! ‘Succession’ is back in production!
Natasha Lyonne hosts an exceptional and emotional ‘Saturday Night Live’
Saturday Night Live
Natasha Lyonne & Japanese Breakfast
May 21, 2022
It’s almost unfair: Natasha Lyonne is one of my favorites — a wonderful actress and a New York classic, and if she had hosted any other episode, that would be the story. Fortunately, she hosted one of the best episodes of the season. Unfortunately, it was the final episode for four now-legendary cast members: Kyle Mooney; Aidy Bryant; Pete Davidson; and the great Kate McKinnon, who, along with Kennan Thompson, has been carrying this show on her back for ten years now, and that will be what this episode is remembered for. Not that it’s a bad thing: the goodbyes are sweet and funny and well-deserved. I just hope Natasha Lyonne is invited back soon: she had great chemistry with the cast, had terrific comedic timing, and held her own in a challenging episode.
Continue reading “Natasha Lyonne hosts an exceptional and emotional ‘Saturday Night Live’”