Saturday Night Live's 50th season is airing amid the 2024 TV schedule, and it signifies a time of reflection. The Emmy-winning variety sketch series has seen many cast members come and go. While the past few years have seen some notable exits, the ensemble remains strong and filled with astute stars. If you need any proof of just how sharp they are, it turns out some of the SNL cast have some great strategies for getting more airtime. I just found this out myself and actually think it's great.
Naturally, there will be cast members who receive more airtime on live TV than others. Some may be tempted to think that it just all depends on the sketches and how they're ordered for the telecast. So imagine my surprise to find that it’s actually much more than that. Some of the cast spoke to Wall Street Journal about the behind-the-scenes technicalities of the storied show, even recalling their first days. Heidi Gardner, who joined at the start of Season 43, remembered just how hard it was to land sketches and all because she thought it was like high school:
My first year, it was really hard for me to knock on doors and think that anyone would want to write with me. Not because people weren’t welcoming but because I thought I was following the rules of senior, junior, sophomore, freshman.
It’s not surprising that the actress felt that way because, in most situations, it does boil down to seniority. However, with a show like Saturday Night Live, it seems like she just needed to try harder. Joining SNL is certainly intimidating, especially with a cast that big and wanting to really break into sketches. Luckily, Heidi Gardner caught on and has since become a fan-favorite, especially last season when she broke during the viral Beavis & Butt-Head sketch. That doesn’t mean she has it easy now, though.
Ego Nwodim, who joined in Season 44, revealed that she’s still going after writers with her own pitches. Considering there are a lot of cast members, it’s not always easy to send off pitches, which is why Nwodim has to do it on Mondays:
I do that as early as possible because their time gets matched up with other cast members who are doing the same thing.
I can only imagine what some of the writers’ inboxes look like at the start of the week, because they probably already have sketches in mind for that week or the following one. One would assume that they’re also bombarded with other pitches from the cast members. On top of that, they have to stay organized and know which sketches to say yes to and which to say no to. Neverthless, Nwodim’s strategy seems to be working for her, and I honestly dig her hustle and drive to advocate for herself.
As for SNL’s most senior cast member, Kenan Thompson, who was cast ahead of Season 29, he simply wants to be in sketches, regardless of what the idea is and who he plays. And I have to say, I like his strategy as well:
It’s just reminding people, ‘Hey, I’m always down to be the hot dog vendor.’
It's honestly hard to say who might become a breakout star when they join SNL. Some actors' talents are immediately undeniable like John Belushi or Kate McKinnon, while it may take others a longer time to find their footing. All in all, it seems that cast members really do have to fight to earn their spots in sketches and, personally, if I were in their shoes, I'd look to the wisdom of Kenan Thompson, Heidi Gardner and Ego Nwodim.
Saturday Night Live airs on the titular day at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC, and episodes can also be streamed with a Peacock subscription.