Lorne Michaels is arguably one of the most powerful individuals working in the entertainment industry today. With more than 50 years of professional experience under his belt, the Saturday Night Live producer commands a considerable amount of respect. That can sometimes manifest in some interesting ways, though. Apparently, there was a situation on the set of John Mulaney’s Netflix show, which became somewhat awkward. It would seem Michaels was standing somewhere he shouldn’t have, and no one would tell him.
Available for Netflix subscription holders, Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney has become something of a weekly comfort show for some viewers. The moment that the eponymous host recalled during a Q&A for the FYSEE LA screening series, though, sounds anything but comforting. The Lorne Michaels snafu was prompted by a question Mulaney received from fellow SNL alum Fred Armisen, and Mulaney described his former boss’ visit with one word:
Fred Armisen: Do you ever, when you’re doing the show, think, ‘Oh, what if Lorne is watching this?’
John Mulaney: Oh, yeah. He came once [to my show]. That was so scary.
Had I been in the Baby J performer’s shoes, I probably would’ve been somewhat uneasy as well. The notion of my former boss watching my show is one thing, but the idea of him actually being in the building amid production is just daunting. John Mulaney’s further comments are sure to make fans chagrin as, before showtime, the seasoned producer stood on Mulaney’s mark, and he was forced to have a weird chat with his ex-employer:
Do you know he was standing on my fucking mark? [He was] not [doing] a bit, like 20 seconds before we went live. He was on his cellphone. I’m walking out … and he’s standing on my mark, and he shows me his phone and is like, ‘Do you want to talk to Tina [Fey]?’ I was like, ‘You’re on my mark and everyone is too afraid to tell you to move.
On the surface, Lorne Michaels might seem relatively mild-mannered, but he can also be intimidating (whether he means to be or not) based on stories that have been told. Ex-SNL writer Rob Klein, for instance, recalled learning how Michaels hated the “Lamps” sketch he wrote years ago. Former series cast member Taran Killam also revealed that after he kept bringing up his 12 Years a Slave role as a part of a comedy bit, Michaels put his foot down in order to have him stop.
Those anecdotes don’t represent the totality of who Lorne Michaels actually is, as he apparently has a softer side as well. Former Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson has been candid about how Michaels has been in his corner for some time now. Tina Fey, who was on SNL for nearly a decade, also holds Michaels in high regard, especially considering that she sought out his opinion on Jon Hamm when she mulled over hiring the actor for 30 Rock.
So there certainly seem to be layers to the legendary producer. In all honesty, it’s somewhat ironic and sweet that when John Mulaney approached Michaels, he was cordially asking if he wanted to speak with Tina Fey. It’s wise not to judge a book by its cover, though I’d be lying if I said I would’ve been the first one eager to tell Michaels to move from Mulaney’s spot.
New episodes of Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney stream on Netflix at 10 p.m. ET on Wednesdays amid the 2025 TV schedule.
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