Saturday Night Live turned 50 last year with an incredible special anniversary docket celebrating some of SNL’s most famous sketches and characters. Even so, it would have been impossible to pay tribute to every iconic SNL moment, which is why I love SNL’s new miniseries, The Rundown. During it, current and former cast members build a dream episode, like a fantasy draft, and I absolutely love Bowen Yang’s pick for the GOAT of Weekend Update characters.
So far on The Rundown, Colin Jost has discussed what makes or breaks a cold open, crowning Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s Katie Couric, Sarah Palin interview as his winner, and Dana Carvey selected "Wayne’s World" featuring Aerosmith as his favorite live sketch, slotting it right after the monologue. This week, SNL brought Bowen Yang in to choose the most iconic Weekend Update guest, and this is the right pick:
Okay, this is really difficult to choose just one 'cause normally you pick three for the show. I am going to choose Stefon, just 'cause we're still saying, ‘New York's hottest club is…’
It’s official, Stefon is Weekend Update’s most iconic guest, and there’s no argument here. He’s always been my personal favorite, and a key introduction into SNL growing up. My favorite part of Bill Hader's recurring city correspondent was his signature hand teepee to hide his laugh and his “secrets.”
In a softer voice than Hader’s real cadence, Stefon would say his iconic line and poke fun at the absurdity of NYC nightlife, hilariously detailing wild features such as Hobocops, Jewish Dracula, and, of course, MTV’s Dan Cortese. This may seem like a niche bit that might not be relatable to all audiences, but Yang explains why the sketch, framed in the context of a patient Seth Meyers asking for tourism recs, worked so well:
That was the perfect joke bag for things that could just live together. They weren't just random things. They were details that had to be like contextualizing each other, and that’s what made you laugh. And we're still quoting it today. We're still watching them back.
Hader’s popular gay alter-ego made his first appearance on SNL in 2008, in a sketch called “Movie Pitch” with Ben Affleck. The eccentric character wasn’t seen again until he made his Update desk debut in 2010, solidifying the blueprint for his wild recs, and has made nearly 20 appearances.
However, there are lots of successful Weekend Update guests to choose from, and before landing on Stefon, Yang goes through some of the most memorable guests to grace the desk: Cecily Strong as Jeanine Pirro, Don Novello as Father Guido Sarducci, Gilda Radner as Roseanne Roseannadanna, and really any character by Kristen Wiig.
Update guests have coined some of SNL’s most iconic catchphrases, providing fans with familiarity week to week. Not only that, but the guest spot allowed comedic flexibility within the show, allowing cast members to share and test comedic songs, stand-up, impressions, and character bits with very little risk, and potentially high reward, like Ego Nwodim’s Miss Eggy, and the recent viral hit of “Red Heart and Aerial Tramway.”
It’s given a lot of silly, random skit ideas the opportunity to grow and flourish into something unexpected, and The Wedding Banquet actor explains Stefon is the perfect storm of all things that make the Weekend Update guest spot great:
There was an arc with that. He got married. And I love that as the journey of an SNL feature that started from a thing that didn't really work in a sketch but then completely was off to the races as soon as it was in the right home. And Update features have been the right home for me.
The Las Culturistas host definitely earned his place among the Weekend Update greats, most notably with his Titanic Iceberg bit and his portrayal as MooDang. Yang quickly became a fan-favorite, becoming a Saturday Night regular as a featured player, much like current cast member Ashley Padilla. Fans were shocked and saddened when The Wedding Banquet actor announced his exit after Season 50, and I already miss his presence on the show.
However, I’m quite excited for his upcoming movie with frequent collaborator Matt Rogers, with the premise of the two main characters trying to get into Berghain, the most exclusive nightclub in the world. Now that sounds like the place a certain Weekend Update city correspondent would frequent, and it sounds like Rogers and Yang could use Stefon's help with this project. One can hope for an SNL cameo, but until then, I’ll be re-watching Stefon sketches on YouTube in preparation for my next visit to New York.
Meanwhile, you can catch new episodes of SNL to see what Update characters roll up to the desk by tuning in every Saturday at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC or with a Peacock subscription.
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