The return of Dana Carvey to Saturday Night Live was one of season 50's highlights. The former SNL cast member took on the role of President Joe Biden, an experience the comedian called "surreal."
Carvey made a splash with his Biden impression during the Saturday Night Live season 50 premiere on September 28, 2024. He became the eighth different performer to play Biden on SNL over the years, joining a list that also includes Jason Sudeikis, Jim Carey, and Kevin Nealon.
But Carvey perhaps had the hardest task when it came to playing Biden. According to the comedian, Biden's mental state in 2024 made impersonating him a touchy subject. "I mean, it was obvious," Carvey said on his podcast, Fly on the Wall. "But it was a delicate thing in the comedy world. There were a lot of people who did not want to do anything that would kind of ding him in an awkward way.”
Carvey went on to call the experience "surreal" and "bizarre." But like any good impressionist, Carvey found a way to make Biden accessible to everyone. And rather than get mean-spirited (like some SNL impressions have been), Carvey chose to keep things lighter.
"That’s the key, if I can do Biden, if I can make Biden funny to everybody, then I am where I want to be,” Carvey told co-host David Spade. “And to make it funny, it had to be recognizable. And so there were certain things I did not include in my package.”
Carvey's version of Joe Biden definitely acknowledged the elephant in the room when it came to the president's tendency to lose track of his thoughts. The former Saturday Night Live star usually played it up by having his Biden repeat phrases or launch into tangents that left those around him confused.
Saturday Night Live has taken a somewhat different approach to Donald Trump. As another elderly politician, Trump's gaffes are played for laughs, and there doesn't appear to be the same effort to keep things light rather than mean-spirited.
Part of that is deserved on the part of Trump. The other half may have something to do with how the Saturday Night Live writers and James Austin Johnson feel about Trump personally.
Carvey surely had a "surreal" moment playing Joe Biden, walking a comedy tightrope to perfection at a time when extra attention was on SNL's political satire. It shouldn't surprise anyone to hear how much thought and consideration Carvey put into the role or that it paid off with a standout performance.
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