Random SNL Audition Stories (13 items)

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  (#7) Chevy Chase

  • 75

  When a performer hears they'll be auditioning for SNL, they typically spend as much time as possible polishing their material to give themselves their best chance. But for the show's inaugural cast in 1975, things were a lot more loose. According to Chevy Chase, Michaels brought all the prospective cast members to a room with a desk in Studio 8H and told them all to just sit down and do something. Since Chase had a background in political satire, with experience writing for Mad magazine and The National Lampoon, he opted to a faux-news style piece about a strange story involving then-president Gerald Ford. Chase thinks this audition gave Michaels the inspiration to create "Weekend Update," of which Chase was the first anchor. 

  But Chase also thinks his audition was only part of the reason why Michaels hired him. Never known for modesty, Chase told The New York Times, "It was pretty clear that I was a funny guy, just as a guy. I was taller than everybody, and very handsome. [Laughs.] It was a good choice, really." 
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  (#8) Bill Hader

  • 40

  Many future SNL cast members first met each other during their auditions. Bill Hader and Andy Samberg's first meeting was memorable for how awkward it was. The two first bumped into each other on an elevator at 30 Rockefeller Center, where Hader saw that Samberg was carrying a backpack full of props, which Hader found intimidating. "I went, 'Oh my god, that guy is so prepared, I have nothing, I have no props,'" he said. Meanwhile, Samberg found Hader's lack of props equally intimidating. "He was looking at me going, 'Oh, that guy has no props. He doesn’t need props,'" Hader said. 

  Things were still awkward when Hader and Samberg wound up on the same plane after their auditions. Hader had already found out that he'd been cast, but Samberg hadn't been told the news. Hader spent the entire flight pretending he was in the dark. 
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  (#12) Marc Maron

  • 55

  SNL has turned down plenty of people who then went on to have successful comedy careers anyway, like standup comedian and podcaster Marc Maron. But according to Maron, he lost out on SNL for the pettiest of reasons: He took a piece of candy from Michaels's desk. 

  In 1995, Michaels considered hiring Maron to host the "Weekend Update" segment. By Maron's telling, the interview didn't go well at all. He showed up to the meeting stoned. He felt slighted by comments Michaels made about the Luna Lounge, a nightclub where he performed, and Maron made an ill-advised joke about monkey droppings. But worst of all, Maron took a Jolly Rancher from a bowl on Michaels's desk. Maron believed that Michaels put candy on his desk as a test to see if a potential candidate was worthy of the job. Maron left the interview thinking that candy had ruined his career. 

  Years later, Maron interviewed Michaels on his podcast, WTF and learned that Michaels had a completely different recollection of the meeting. First of all, the candies on his desk were Tootsie Rolls, not Jolly Ranchers, and the "candy test" was a figment of Maron's imagination. Michaels also explained why he didn't hire him. It wasn't because he didn't believe in Maron's talent. It was simply a matter of TV production. The show was in a period of transition and was receiving criticism from both critics and network executives. Ultimately, Michaels just couldn't find a spot for Maron in the lineup. 

  After years of building up Michaels as a villain in his mind, Maron was finally able to let it go. 
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  (#5) Kenan Thompson

  • 40

  Kenan Thompson went into his SNL audition in a stronger position than most, since he'd already starred on a sketch comedy TV show in Nickelodeon's All That. It still took him three years of submitting tapes to finally get an audition in 2003. Then, when he finally got in front of Michaels, he didn't feel like he made the best impression. Thompson was required to do standup comedy, which isn't his strong suit. To showcase his celebrity impression skills, Thompson then did a scene that involved the Reverend Al Sharpton having a phone conversation with Arnold Schwarzenegger talking about budgets in Harlem. 

  Thompson still doesn't think the scene was very good, but it was enough to get him the job. He would go on to become SNL's longest-tenured cast member - 17 seasons and counting - and even ended up playing Sharpton on the show. 
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  (#6) Horatio Sanz

  • 49

  Horatio Sanz grew up watching the show. When he got the call to audition while working as a company member at the Second City in Chicago, Sanz prepared for SNL more than he had for any other audition in his life. He arrived in New York a week early to acclimate and practice his material, and during his audition, he managed to get actual laughs. 

  But even though Sanz felt good about his chances, Michaels's cryptic way of doing business meant Sanz was never quite sure he got the show until he was actually on it. When he met Michaels after his audition, Michaels said, "You did good. We liked you, we'd like to have you, I think we'd like to have you on the show," but stopped short of actually confirming the news. Michaels even told Sanz to move to New York, but when Sanz asked if that meant he could tell his parents the news, Michaels said no. He told Sanz, "Tell them you have to move to New York, but don't tell them you'll be on the show." 

  As Sanz now knows, even getting cast on SNL isn't a guarantee that you'll stick around for a full season, and this was Michaels's way of letting candidates know. 
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  (#9) Victoria Jackson

  • 59

  SNL is known for hiring comedians of all stripes, and not just sketch comedy specialists. Victoria Jackson got the chance to audition in 1986 after producers saw her standup comedy routine in which she stood on her head and recited poetry. Making her audition even more challenging, she was given just one day to prepare. She'd just given birth three months earlier. And finally, when Jackson flew to New York, the airline lost the ukulele that was central to her routine. 

  Jackson showed up for the audition wearing a French maid outfit she often wore during standup. Lorne Michaels liked her performance, but was hesitant to hire her because she didn't do celebrity impressions, and she didn't get the job. But soon after, she saw an opportunity to change Michaels's mind. She had been scheduled to appear on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and asked Carson's producers if she could try out some new impressions as a sort of extended audition. They agreed, so long as she didn't name the show she was auditioning for. She spent two weeks practicing impersonations like Edith Bunker, Teri Garr, and Tina Turner, and performed them on the show. It worked, and Michaels gave her the job. 

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