How Jason Sudeikis made the most of his Saturday Night Live return

Jason Sudeikis returned to Saturday Night Live to play Vice President Joe Biden for the first time this season.

Christmas time is always a good time to reconnect with old friends and family and share some good times together. Saturday Night Live was no different during it’s Christmas episode, welcoming back a number of friends to celebrate the return of Eddie Murphy. Among those who came back to SNL was Jason Sudeikis.

Sudeikis was a cast member from 2005 to 2013 where he joined Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg, and Bill Hader in one of the strongest casts in SNL history. Since then, Sudeikis has appeared on SNL sparingly, especially compared to his former castmates.

But that changed on Dec. 21 when Sudeikis returned to revive his impression of former Vice President Joe Biden. Until then, the role had been occupied by Woody Harrelson. Harrelson unveiled his take on Vice President Biden when he hosted the season 45 premiere.

Harrleson has a much different version of Vice President Biden than Sudeikis. Harrelson gives the audience a much more accurate depiction of Biden in 2019 as the former VP seeks to become the Democratic nominee for president.

So rather than try to replicate that for the sake of continuity, Sudeikis went right back to what made his Biden a standout impression during the Obama era. The comedian stuck with the folksy approach but also tied in some of the racially insensitive remarks that have got Biden in hot water while campaigning.

Sudeikis brought an energy to the cold open that was very much needed. Larry David as Senator Bernie Sanders is typically the star of these sketches but Sudeikis made sure the audience paid more attention to his Biden.

It’s unclear if Saturday Night Live has stuck with Harrelson as Biden because that’s how it was in the premiere. Biden was realistically the only candidate Harrelson could portray. Or it could be that Sudekis’ version of Biden just doesn’t fit with what the writers want to do this season. And of course, schedules are an issue as both Harrelson and Sudeikis are busy, working actors.

Whether or not it was the last time we see Jason Sudeikis as Vice President Joe Biden is uknown. But what we do know is that Sudeikis made the most of his return and reminded SNL fans that he should be counted among the decade’s best performers.

Sudeikis also made sure to bring home a souvenir from what was a landmark episode of Saturday Night Live. Returning to the show for the first time in 35 years, host Eddie Murphy helped deliver the highest rated episode in two years. Much of that was due to bringing back several icon characters like Buckwheat, Mister Robinson, Gumby, and Velvet Jones.

And it looks like one of Velvet Jones’ books found its way back home with Jason Sudeikis. His longtime girlfriend Olivia Wilde posted this picture on Twitter showcasing the very special Christmas gift that Sudeikis gave her.

https://twitter.com/oliviawilde/status/1208865972670455808

So now Olivia Wilde has a piece of Saturday Night Live history thanks to Jason Sudeikis. Just another example of how the comedian made the most of his return to Studio 8H. It (hopefully) wasn’t his last so maybe Wilde can expect even more epic SNL gifts in the future. If not, maybe he picked up something for his work on The Mandalorian?

What did you think of Jason Sudeikis’ return to Saturday Night Live? Who should be playing Vice President Joe Biden for the rest of season 45? Let us know in the comment section below!