Saturday Night Live

it's kind of the SNL way for the biggest names to move on and then people you didn't think of as stars to come into their own, though -- not that i necessarily think Hader or Moynihan or Pedrad or Armisen or Thompson or Elliott is suddenly going to become any more popular than they were before, but stranger things have happened and i'm kind of happy to see most of them get a bigger piece of the post-Wiig pie

I also agree that it would've been wise for Lorne to have a new Digital Shorts dude on the backburner. That absence will be glaring.

the Lonely Island dudes have so clearly been running on fumes imo -- ever since they dropped their 2nd album they've shied away from musical sketches and a lot of those have been straight up terrible or just sequels to earlier ones

"bridesmaids" is def more an indication of her ability to drive a majorly successful film from its inception than it is her fame as an actress

This is the point I've tried to make anytime someone has doubted whether Kristin Wiig is gonna make it post-SNL. She didn't just passively show up to someone else's party and get super lucky. She had a lot to do with the creation and success of Bridesmaids, and a combination of talent and having her hands on the reins should translate into a solid film career for her.

the Lonely Island dudes have so clearly been running on fumes imo

Oh, for sure. It doesn't change the fact that the Digital Shorts have become a real staple of the show over the past five years. I mean, to younger generations, their absence may feel as glaring as Weekend Update's would to us.

it's kind of the SNL way for the biggest names to move on and then people you didn't think of as stars to come into their own, though

Too true! I dont think anyone SNL fan thought Sandler would be some A-list actor when he left; let alone saw Rob Schneider having a career at all!

I do think in a post-Sudekis universe, Jay and Vanessa have the potential to really steal the spotlight, as they're probably two of the most preternaturally gifted "supporting players" in 20 years

I like Vanessa bayer a lot, I cld see jay taking off he got some ppl to write actual sketches for him

yeah pharoah def seems stuck in a rut... he's not even really that good at impressions!

killam will be big seeing as he saw as much screen time this year as any regular cast member

Lol @ jordan's constant high hopes for tarran killem

well i do like him but i'm just observing that he got a lot of play this season

He's not gonna get Nick Cannon on the show, J0rd. You gotta accept that!

I always make a gender switch spoonerism when I say his name out loud as Karen tilliam

xp hahaha

taran killam is probably the most poised to become a sudeikis-type utility player of the guys. maybe stefon is big enough that hader will be the default 'star' though?

jay pharoah is just kinda sad imo. that jay-z impression, ugh.

Jay Pharaoh has gotten a little more comfortable onstage, but dude was just painful to watch for a while. He's pretty clearly not much of an ensemble performer, and he's just really limited in general. I mean, can you see him holding his own in any sketch where he isn't doing an impression or where he had to play an actual character rather than a caricature?

being an impressionist limited to jay-z, will smith and denzel washington is not really a formula for sustained success

Lol @ jordan's constant high hopes for tarran killem

Dude, you need to stop watching whatever alternative reality SNL you tune into where Jay Pharaoh is a megatalent and maybe catch up with the one in our reality. Taran Killam is gonna be the next big breakout star on the show. I would bet actual money on that one.

Unless Kate McKinnon eclipses him, but she has some catching up to do.

i don't know if killam is gonna be a breakout star or anything (he may be!) just saying that he's been used a lot and is pretty versatile so he'll prob be one of the main dudes next season if sudeikis and sandberg bolt

the worst thing about jay pharoah is when he's not doing impressions, he ends up doing these bit parts where he wears a funny outfit and just stares at the audience expecting them to laugh as if he has that kind of tracy morgan quality he totally lacks

Killam is super talented and charismatic and he hasn't done the "featured player hangback" that happens so often. He got comfortable with the rest of the cast really quickly and just brought it like a full cast member (a la Moynihan before him). And it's paid off so far and, like Moynihan, I guarantee it's gonna continue to pay off in terms of a quick promotion to the main cast.

the worst thing about jay pharoah is when he's not doing impressions, he ends up doing these bit parts where he wears a funny outfit and just stares at the audience expecting them to laugh as if he has that kind of tracy morgan quality he totally lacks

Exactly. Maybe if the writers put him in a sketch where he actually plays, like, a boyfriend or a brother or a coworker or someone with a realistic relationship with another human being, I could wind up with egg on my face. But something tells me he's probably much more comfortable doing what he's doing.

Jay Pharaoh has gotten a /little/ more comfortable onstage, but dude was just painful to watch for a while. He's pretty clearly not much of an ensemble performer, and he's just really limited in general. I mean, can you see him holding his own in any sketch where he isn't doing an impression or where he had to play an actual character rather than a caricature?
--Quiet Desperation, LLC (Deric W. Haircare)

I mean, I agree with all this! I just think that will translate into something beyond SNL

And Vanessa was integrated into the cast waaaaay faster than Tarran.

love the Miley Cyrus show, also her anime one with killiam

bayer had an early hit with miley but both got integrated way fast, esp considering actual cast member abby elliott was stuck to the sidelines until late this season

that's cos Abby Elliott sucks

i can't remember elliott getting anything bigger than "angelina jolie walk-through on update" shit until Zooey Deschanel, I've actually liked her recently. I think she and Moynihan could keep coming into their own as more of the old guard departs

xxxxpost

Mmm, in a way, but I'd almost chalk that up more to the relative dearth of female performers than I would SNL's genuine appreciation for her talents. And if you're referring to stuff like her getting to do the Miley Cyrus sketches right out of the gate, I'd point out that there was an early push to give all of the new featured performers a surprisingly large amount of exposure last year, but that got pretty quickly scaled back. They all kinda just found their own grooves at that point.

Will totally agree that Bayer is more integrated than Elliott, though, by some distance. Which is...weird.

Why can't she just be a gifted performer?

I dunno if it's coincidental but it seemed like Elliott got more spots after that aborted Fox pilot. Would not be shocked by some "play me or trade me" drama.

i can't remember elliott getting anything bigger than "angelina jolie walk-through on update" shit until Zooey Deschanel,

Rachel Maddow and Meryl Streep. That might be it, though.

fur coat rhonda!

forgot about maddow - what was her big meryl streep sketch? or was that part of a "cast does a series of impressions" thing?

It was a digital short: Meryl Streep on Ice. Feel like she might've done it on Weekend Update, too?

fur coat rhonda!

― mizzell, Sunday, May 27, 2012 10:56 AM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark

haha fuck, fur coat rhonda is the best

did they do another one of those sketches recently btw?

yes

ah fuck

as much as i'd miss some of them, i actually hoped hader, thompson, samberg, armisen, wigg and sudeikis would all split this year. they've all been around since 2005 or earlier.

i legit need a slappy pappy hour long special

did they do another one of those sketches recently btw?

It was Web-only but just as funny as the other two, IMO. RIP Goran "Funky Boy" Bogdan, though.

yeah wtf how did that get cut

i legit need a slappy pappy hour long special
--fapper don (J0rdan S.)

Yessssssd

Why can't she just be a gifted performer?

Well, she is a talented performer, but it's helpful if you don't move the goalposts in the middle of the conversation (which was about whether she or Killam became integrated into the cast more quickly).

Apparently, Slappy Pappy is a variation of a character Moynihan was doing at UCB. So he might have a film's-worth of material built up.

my fav one-off catchphrase comedian was Boston powers

you guys are really not factoring in popularity on the mixtape circuit here, TK's Tear 'N Kill 'Em has over three times as many downloads on Dat Piff as JP's Jay Egyptronica

Hi Hader