Michael Longfellow
Devon Walker
Marcello Hernandez
Molly Kearney
Kenan Thompson
[In the video, it’s written “What’s it like being new at SNL?”]
Michael: Being a new cast member at SNL, you get a lot of advice.
Devon: Advice from friends, family, veteran cast members. Even Lorne.
Marcello: Lorne told me, “Don’t do too much in the first couple shows, let the audience discover you and get to know you.”
MIchael: He told me to find writers who understand my voice, my odd haunting voice.
Devon: He told me to just be me, to trust my instinct from stand up, and then I’ll know how to handle an audience. He was really sweet about it.
Molly: See, this is all kind of crazy to hear. Because on day one, Lorne pulled me into his office and said, “Molly, there’s only one reason you’re here. I need you to kill Vladimir Putin.” He hands me this gun. He says, “Don’t worry, the serial numbers have been scratched off, they’ll never trace it back to us.” I’m like, “Us?”
Marcello: I told my friends. Don’t expect to see me in a bunch of sketches right away. Lorne said to really take my time. You know, maybe don’t even write a sketch till Christmas.
Devon: My uncle said make sure to get an accountant and to watch him because somebody will take my money.
Molly: I told Lorne, “Please don’t make me do this. I’d rather be doing sketches because that’s what I came here to do.” And Lorne goes, “Everybody’s done sketches. But you know what Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler never did? Kill Vladimir Putin?” And I’m like, “Aw, do I tell my agents about this?”
[In the video, it’s written “What kind of response have you gotten?”]
Michael: David Spade called and said “Congrats on your first update feature. We’re both from Arizona.” So that was really cool.
Devon: I got flowers from Kristen Wiig. I was like, that’s insane. I can’t even believe she knows who I am.
Molly: I get a call middle of the night. It’s former Secretary of State, John Kerry. He says Mom, I’m with Lorne. Can you be here in 10 minutes with your bags packed?” I’m thinking “Packed with what”
Michael: You feel like you’re part of a larger family all of a sudden. I saw my photo on the same wall as Eddie Murphy. I mean, that’s crazy.
Devon: I got recognized on the street after my first show. They didn’t think I was Kenan but it was still nice.
Molly: So I get to Lorne’s at 4 AM. It’s John Kerry, Bill Gates and weirdly, Kelly Ripa. Lorne says, “We can get you to Russia, but we can’t promise we can get you out.” And I really want to be on SNL. So I’m just like nodding my head and saying ‘Anything you say sir.” And Kelly Ripa was really sweet. She’s like, “Whatever happens, just know your family will be taken care of.” I’m like, “Is Kelly Ripa gonna pay for my funeral?”
[In the video, it’s written “What is the writing process like?”]
Marcello: I was working on a sketch this week. And Lorne said, “Don’t rush into it.” He said even if I’m not in any sketches for the first year or two, that’s fine.
Devon: I told Lorne I was working on a sketch for me and Molly, and he just kind of stared off into the distance and said, “If we ever see Molly again.” That ain’t feel right.
Molly: I’m thrown in the back of a van. I hear a military guy scream, “If she gets captured over there, she’s on her own.” And I want her to be like, “It’s actually like, it’s actually they, not she,” but it didn’t seem like the right moment for the pronoun talk. Then we drive strength through the night at like 150 miles an hour. And I’m like, “Whoa. The hours of SNL really are crazy.”
[In the video, it’s written “Are you making friends?”]
Michael: We were texting each other the first week like “Good luck, break a leg.” Then Molly texted “I have to kill.” It’s like, don’t put that kind of pressure on yourself.
Devon: You realize there’s this whole community of people who work at SNL, and we’re all just here to do comedy. Except apparently Molly.
Molly: The van screeches to a halt. They throw me onto a dock rip off the hood. And I’m like, “Is this the Panama Canal?” Then a guy walks up in his safari hat and white mustache. I swear to God, it was Lorne’s twin brother. And he says, [foreign language] [Subtitle says “Let her go. She’s loyal.”] Then they drive away and I go to call an Uber but I can’t use my phone because they burned my fingerprints off.
Michael: At the end of the day, you have to realize you’re going to have good shows and bad shows. Last week I got on Weekend Update. This week, I get to play Kanye West. You just have to enjoy the ride.
Marcello: Exactly. Don’t try to write or pitch ideas. Don’t expect anyone to put you in sketches or give you a computer or an office or an ID so you can get inside the building. Just gotta chill at home.
Devon: And it’s even more exciting that there are four new cast members so we can all experience it together.
Molly: Long story short, most of my first week at SNL I spent on connecting buses through Central America, but I made it back in time for this show. And right before the cold open started, Lorne came up to me and said, “Molly, I’m really proud of you. And just so you know, we never made cast members kill people.” I thought that was really cool.
Kenan: Wait, so I didn’t have to kill Osama bin Laden? Damn. [pulls out a gun] Now I got a taste for it.