Gabriel LaBelle as Lorne Michaels
WHO HE’S PLAYING: Lorne Michaels, the legendary creator of SNL.
WHERE YOU KNOW HIM FROM: LaBelle broke out as teen filmmaker Sammy in Steven Spielberg’s autobiographical 2022 film The Fabelmans. His TV credits include iZombie and American Gigolo.
The only one that doesn’t look anything like the actor (I know they’re not gonna look exactly alike as the actor) is Cory Michael Smith as Chevy Chase.
Really? I can totally see it. Especially in the pics they used above. I think, once they get the 1970s wigs on, they’ll pretty much all be dead ringers.
I don’t see it. All I know of Cory is from Gotham. He was a tall and lanky Riddler (which is what he’s giving me in the picture). Chevy Chase was tall, but I wouldn’t describe him as lanky… though Cory can put some weight for the role. And Cory is a bit pale compared to Chevy.
How much they look alike is less important than how well Cory can capture Chase’s mannerisms, cadence and physicality. Based on Cory’s excellent performance as the Riddler on Gotham, I’m pretty confident he can capture Chase’s sometimes over-the-top style.
Side note: Chase was best known in his SNL days for his impression of then-President Gerald Ford. Yet Chase looked nothing like Ford, and he didn’t even try to look or sound like Ford. Yet somehow, the impression worked because it was based more on exaggeration and parody than trying to actually look like Ford. Cory at least bears a superficial resemblance to Chase, which Chevy clearly did not to President Ford.
Cory is going to be fantastic, the casting I’m most excited for.
Roger that!
For me, that’s true also, but only because I saw him in Gotham, so all I can picture him as is the Riddler. He did such a great job in that that I can’t wait to see how he will do in this role.
Give him a dimple in his chin and bulk up slightly. It could work. Loved his as Nygma on Gotham.
“first ever taping”
Taping? What part of “Live” escaped your notice?
In certain contexts the terminology for something being filmed/broadcast live (WWE shows, SNL, news broadcasts, etc) are still referred to as a “taping.” Also, despite initially airing live, something like SNL is being taped for rebroadcasting purposes. Has the concept of a rerun alluded you?
What part of any of that escaped your notice?
I don’t know exactly how 1970s TV cameras work, but I’m pretty sure there was some sort of tape involved. I doubt they shot on film, and digital recording was still decades away.
I think they would have to tape it so that it can air in other areas of the country other than the Eastern Time Zone.
Being a ‘baby-boomer’, I remember the classic original 1970’s version of SNL (actually called Saturday Night… Live from N.Y.C.). Bill Murray was a great addition in the 2nd or 3rd season. The 2nd iteration in the early 80’s was funny only because of Eddie Murphy (okay perhaps Billy Crystal has some fans(?)… although I’m not crazy about him). Since then, SNL is irrelevant, too ‘leftist’ politically, it’s unfunny and completely unwatchable. Most of its former cast members were Belushi or Radner wannabe’s and they vanished into obscurity as “nobodies”. Poetic justice.
Go back to bed, grandpa.
SNL has always been a very good bellwether of both the comedy and the culture of its day. If you think it stopped being good after the 1980s, that’s probably about the time the modern world left you behind.
SNL lampoons anything and anyone that deserves it. I grew up in the 90s on Darrell Hammond’s Bill Clinton. It was a great impression, jusy like James Austin’s Johnson’s 45 today. I guarantee if SNL had someone with a fantastic Joe Biden, they’d use them a lot. They just don’t have one. I think Fallon does a great vocal impersonation though.
Having also watched it from the beginning, it was originally called “NBC’s Saturday Night,” because of ABC’s show that year called “Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell.” After Cosell was canceled, the NBC show became just “Saturday Night” for a couple years, and then “Saturday Night Live,” which is what everyone was calling it anyway.
Okay boomer.
I have watched SNL since I was 4 years old in 1977. Is every episode/skit hilarious? No. But there have been so many great performers to come from SNL: Mike Myers, Dana Carvey, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, Kristin Wiig, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Kate McKinnon just to name a few! If you haven’t watched since Eddie Murphy was on it, you really can’t say its unwatchable. There are a lot of funny skits tht are still on it to this day!!
What about Michael O’Donoghue? No one will be playing him? He was also in that pilot and was one of those involved behind the scenes.
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He was also the actor who, in the opening skit, was teaching John Belushi’s character English before O’Donoghue’s character fell over dead from a heart attack. (Which Belushi’s character then mimicked/followed, as Chevy Chase stood over them saying that famous line, “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!”
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And I only know this via repeats. I was born in 1972, so I was 3 when this show started. (And I read some SNL books. O’Donoghue was apparently an intense figure, but to omit him here seems rather surprising.)
O’Donoghue was clearly a major force in the show’s early history and probably should have been included. In addition to speaking the first line of dialogue ever used, he was also the show’s head writer and responsible for many of its most memorable sketches in the early years including the famous Star Trek parody where John Belushi played Kirk and Chevy Chase played Spock having his ears pulled off.
But he also had a darker side which turned off many executives, perhaps best exemplified by a long 20-minute sketch which never aired during his second term on the show where he compared former NBC executive Fred Silverman to Adolf Hitler. In real life, O’Donoghue suffered from chronic migraine headaches (which may explain why he wrote so many sketches involving getting needles in the eyes), and was considered by many to be unpleasant and difficult to work with.
I’m guessing O’Donoghue will be included in the film in a small role for historical accuracy, but because he was such a weird guy who no one really liked, I don’t think he will be a key character.
Years ago, I got tired of ‘clip shows’ or ‘shows about’. I would rather just watch the stupid show. Sure, I’m talking about the late 80s or early 90s. The same applies to the original cast. It was funny to a lot of people and the that later stuff was very funny to me. The original cast had a DVD release at least.
I guess I’m not a fan of biographies and ‘shows about shows’.
I’m glad they’re including Jim Henson in this, as a Muppet fan it gives me a reason to see the movie (even if the role is going to be small compared to everyone elses)
Three ethnic Jews being played by white Europeans, sigh, what else is new…
Are you familiar with the concept of acting?
This is an interesting project. But I wonder if anyone who experienced that era will like the movie. These actors were so important in our youth. Saturday Night Live in 1975 was a cultural earthquake. It was like the kids were given NBC for 90 minutes every Saturday night, starting at 11:30. Before SNL, Saturday late night TV was mostly B horror movies. After SNL took off, we couldn’t wait to see what the Not Ready for Prime Time Players were going to do.
Wow that is perfect casting. Some of them look so much like the people they’re playing it’s scary.
“…Jane Curtin, who manned the Weekend Update anchor desk…” She did not man anything, she took over.
Do better Dave.
We’ve yet to see SCTV 76, with Jack Black as John Candy, Rick Glassman as Harold Ramis, and Michelle Burke as Andrea Martin. Now, who would round out the rest of the cast?