Celebrities who host Saturday Night Live get quite a bit of say when it comes to the sketches they’ll be in — they can even contribute their own ideas to the writers. As SNL’s longest-tenured cast member, Kenan Thompson has probably been in as many of these pitch meetings as anyone, and while he said the hosts don’t necessarily need to come in with funny ideas in order to have a great show, one member of the Five-Timers Club consistently kills it.
Kenan Thompson has been a Saturday Night Live cast member for more than 20 years, so when he endorses someone as always prepared and whose material always hits, I’m inclined to believe him. He says actress/comedienne Melissa McCarthy never disappoints when she shows up for her hosting gigs, telling People:
I remember Melissa McCarthy came in with a lot of ideas and she was like, ‘I just want to throw this out there real quick. I was thinking about these things.’ And they were all hilarious. Melissa always comes in with a few heavy hitters on deck and it's kind of amazing.
It’s no secret after movies like Bridesmaids, Spy and The Heat that Melissa McCarthy is teeming with comedic talent — just look at the wild sketch she did with Jack Black and a bottle of lotion, for example — but that doesn’t necessarily mean that talent would translate into writing good sketch ideas.
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Kenan Thompson said he’s seen all levels of preparedness when it comes to the celebrity hosts, and he definitely doesn’t expect everyone to be on Melissa McCarthy’s level. He continued:
There are some people that come in strapped. And then there's other people that give the grace to everybody because they know it might be awkward or a lot of pressure or whatever, and they just let the room go around and thank everybody as they go and not really interject too much. And those are great too.
While I’m sure the SNL writers appreciate when people come with ideas, it’s probably also nice if the host is simply open-minded to the ideas that they come up with. I’d imagine the amount of respect that’s shown to the people in the room is way more important than the number of ideas they contribute. Not all hosts are going to gel with the cast members, and you hate to hear about situations where a guest makes cast members cry.
Melissa McCarthy has done amazing work on Saturday Night Live over the years — both as a host of the show and her multiple surprise cameos — so it’s nice to hear her get shouted out by Kenan Thompson for it. It’s also great to hear that she apparently has a great collaborative relationship with the cast. No wonder they keep inviting her back!
Tune in to see what hilarity is to come when Olivia Rodrigo joins the list of SNL double threats, those who have hosted and served as the musical guest in the same episode. After performing twice before, the singer will make her hosting debut at 11:30 p.m. ET Saturday, May 2, on NBC and streaming live with a Peacock subscription.
