Former Saturday Night Live cast member Chris Parnell is offering an honest look back at his time on the show. According to the SNL alum, one host in particular didn’t quite fit the mold despite making a strong impression on Lorne Michaels.
In a recent interview with LateNighter.com, Parnell didn’t hold back or try to be political when asked to name his least favorite SNL host. The ex-cast member named Tom Green, who hosted Saturday Night Live on November 18, 2000.
“Tom Green, for sure, because he really turned that episode into The Tom Green Show,” Parnell said. “Lorne Michaels was fully on board for it — one of the sketches was Lorne in a bathtub with him. Lorne’s a genius, for sure, but I think he thought Tom Green was, like, the next Andy Kaufman or something. The humor didn’t work for me at all in that show.”
Green’s hosting stint in 2000 came at the height of his cultural relevance. His MTV series, The Tom Green Show, had built a devoted following with its chaotic and absurdist style. The show was very much in the mold of anti-comedy that pushed boundaries and looked for discomfort. At the time, Green represented a new wave of alt-comedy that felt unpredictable and, to some, revolutionary. So Parnell's reference to Kaufman is spot on, at least in terms of what Green wanted to achieve and how his supporters viewed his style.
That context likely explains why Michaels appeared unusually willing to let Green run wild. The Saturday Night Live creator has a reputation for running a tight ship and maintaining a tight grip on how SNL operates. But it seems like Parnell's take is that Michaels had such a high opinion of Green that the producer was willing to change things up.
It’s hard to imagine Michaels inserting himself into a sketch in quite the same way today, let alone appearing in a bathtub alongside a host. But Green clearly made a strong impression on Michaels, even if the result didn’t resonate with everyone in the cast.
And that wasn't even the most bizarre moment of Green's episode. During Green’s monologue, he brought then-girlfriend Drew Barrymore on stage and teased the audience with the idea that the couple would get married live before the end of the show. As the night went on, the bit escalated, culminating in a staged wedding setup ... only for Barrymore to get “cold feet” and leave Green at the altar. The stunt left viewers and media outlets at the time unsure whether they had just witnessed a prank or a real attempt at a live TV wedding.
By contrast, Parnell pointed to a very different kind of host as his favorite. Julianna Margulies impressed Parnell when she hosted on February 12, 2000.
"She was so game and committed to it and was such a lovely person—physically, and as a human being. I was really taken with her,” he said. “I also thought she made really good, funny choices in the sketches. Like, who knew she was really funny?”
The contrast between the two hosts highlights what Parnell seems to value most in an SNL host. Known during his tenure for his commitment, Parnell thrived on the show no matter what was asked of him as a performer.. It’s no surprise that he appreciated a host like Margulies who was willing to plug into the machine rather than expect the show to bend around their own comedic instincts.