Peacock's new documentary SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night provides an in-depth look at every aspect of Saturday Night Live from casting to producing the show. It's filled with amazing anecdotes, including details on some standout auditions.
The documentary's first episode, released on January 16, focuses on the audition process. Saturday Night Live cast members past and present recall how they ended up trying out for the show, the nerves the felt, and what it meant to ultimately join the show. Tracy Morgan, Heidi Gardner, Bill Hader, and more tell their stories.
Here are three standout stories about auditioning for Saturday Night Live taken from the new documentary, SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night.
Will Ferrell's audition bit became a sketch in his first show
For a generation of Saturday Night Live fans, Will Ferrell is the pinnacle of sketch comedy and character creation. So it's not all that surprising to hear he entered his audition with material already ready to go to air.
Former Saturday Night Live producer Mike Shoemaker recalled Ferrell's audition prior to the performer joining SNL in the 1995 season. Shoemaker said Ferrell's "get off the shed character" was so good, it became a sketch in Ferrell's first episode.
The documentary SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night talks with several cast members who visibly cringe at their audition, including Amy Poehler and Bobby Moynihan. It shows that not everyone who gets hired comes in full of confidence and eager to share a wealth of material.
It makes it all the more impressive that Ferrell not only had multiple characters that made it to the show, but one that was so undeniable, Saturday Night Live couldn't wait to get it on the air.
Kenan Thompson's SNL audition went on way too long
Maybe it's fitting that the longest-tenured Saturday Night Live cast member had one of the longest auditions, too. Kenan Thompson ran a little long when he tried out for the show.
SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night stars with an episode titled "Five Minutes," a reference to the length of a typical Saturday Night Live audition. It gives performers just enough time to run through characters and impressions, while Lorne Michaels and the producers get a feel for their talent.
SNL staffers like Marci Klein and Lindsay Shookus emphasize how every second of the audition is important and how the success or failure is usually evident early on. But for some reason, all those norms went out the window for Kenan Thompson.
Thompson's audition in Studio 8H ran just over 11 minutes, more than twice as long as a standard SNL audition. It featured the actor doing several impressions that eventually made it on the show, including Al Sharpton and Bill Cosby.
Kristen Wiig's audition characters have all been on TV
Like Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig is a fan-favorite who helped define an era of Saturday Night Live. And it all started with her audition.
Wiig came to Saturday Night Live through the Groundlings. There, she developed multiple characters that would help her impress SNL brass during her audition. It turned out that all of those characters were worthy of being on the show.
Mike Shoemaker revealed that every character Wiig used to audition made it on to television. That included the Target Lady and Aunt Linda.
The documentary suggests that the audition mostly lets SNL producers get an idea of what a performer can do. The producers are looking for a spark or something different that tells them how the actor could be used.
Wiig was a rare case in which she left no doubt about what she could do, and it was all her material. Cast members shared the challenge in getting their sketches on the air or finding the best writer for collaboration. Wiig's audition proved she was ready to hit the ground running at Saturday Night Live.
All four episodes of SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night are now available to stream on Peacock.