Michael Che is quite popular on SNL these days, but when he first started out, things weren’t nearly as set in stone. In fact, Che really struggled during the early days on the late night NBC series. What I really mean by early days is more like early years, honestly.
In fact, the comedian recalled his early experiences on Saturday Night Live during a recent chat with fellow funnyman Mike Birbiglia. He said he owed a gratitude of debt to his “Weekend Update” co-star Colin Jost for helping him get the gig on the big stage, but his early memories of the show were honestly “terrible.” Yeah, like he literally used the word terrible.
I remember it being terrible, so for it to be something that people like is still kind of bizarre. The first few years it was rough. It was really rough. It was hard to do.
So, why did working on Saturday Night Live suck so much for him early on? Apparently, there were two big reasons.
Article continues belowReason SNL Stunk #1: Che Inherited Seth Meyers’ Writers
First and foremost, Michael Che was inheriting types of jokes when he started out. There was a weird transition period on the NBC series for a while there. Seth Meyers and Amy Poehler had been the long-standing “Update” hosts, then Seth took the desk by himself, and then for a brief moment Cecily Strong and Seth Meyers took the desk. When Seth left, Colin Jost worked with Strong for a while, but Che was brought in as a replacement.
In short, a lot of change was going on at “Weekend Update” at the time. One constant seems to have been the writing staff, but Che told Mike Birbiglia that didn’t really work for them at first because the writers hadn't been hired specifically for them.
To be honest with you, you’ll know what I mean, but if you don’t tell jokes or write jokes you won’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, but I feel like there was a time when, Seth did it before us. So, we inherited Seth’s writers. So, when they’re doing jokes for Seth, it’s different than writing jokes for me or you know. In particular, it was hard for me to learn to do Update and tell a joke that I would tell as opposed to a joke they would give me to tell. So, I had to learn how to do it.
I do get it. Seth Meyers is nothing like Michael Che. His sense of humor is different. He’s got an adorable laugh. He’s funniest on his own late night show when he’s lightheartedly day drinking. Che is also great, but he does not have the same energy as Meyers in the least. People like to describe his comedy as raw, and he and Jost’s most popular “Joke Swap” segment intentionally goes hard in the paint.
Reason SNL Stunk #2: Michael Che Is A Standup Comedian
I did not know the two had inherited Meyers’ writers, but I can see how that might have made things harder early on. However, Che’s second point has to do with standup, and it's something those who have done stand-up will get far more than I do:
Also reading a joke and telling a joke is so tricky. Your mind is going two different places. Every word has a music to it to make the joke land. So when you’re just reading it on the page, you don’t just read it and it works. It’s gotta like, there’s a rhythm to it. So, remembering the rhythm on cards, it’s almost better to just remember the joke to read the joke. I feel like for joke writers they don’t really understand it as much. Joke tellers get it.
What he seems to be talking about is comedic timing, and making sure the wording lands in a way a large swathe of the audience finds funny. Actors read and then figure out how to deliver, but from what he seems to be saying is he needs to do things differently in order to be successful and SNL, and in extension Update, don’t lend themselves to that. He’s not the only stand-up to have that problem, either.
There’s like a few exceptions, Usually standups have the hardest time with cards. It’s not because we can’t read them. We’re making choices on every word in a way that I don’t think actors typically do... that was like the trickiest part for years.
He’s clearly doing something right these days. He and Colin Jost have owned the “Weekend Update” desk since 2014, and it's a well-known fact they are both in high demand elsewhere. There’s no word on whether Colin Jost or Michael Che will be exiting anytime soon, but they have said it’s “hard to imagine.” Season 51 is currently airing on the 2026 TV schedule, and we have a few more upcoming hosts and musical guests before the season wraps, but the end of each season brings some shakeups, so we’ll keep you posted when it comes to Fall TV.
