James Franco never ceases to get up to weird shenanigans. The actor, producer, writer and artist recently announced that he has a documentary headed to Hulu on Friday. What’s more surprising? The documentary follows the behind-the-scenes world of Saturday Night Live featuring interviews with writers, crew members and plenty of featured and Not Ready For Primetime Players.
Here’s what we know about the documentary. First, Franco took to Instagram on Friday to tease the big event, stating that the documentary is about the “history” of SNL.
“THE SNL DOCUMENTARY is finally coming out!!! On HULU! This FRIDAY! Watch my documentary about the history of @nbcsnl “Saturday Night" on #hulu Plus”
James Franco has hosted Saturday Night Live on several occasions. The first time he hosted happened back in September of 2008. A few months after his first appearance on NBC’s late night sketch comedy series, he headed back to 30 Rock to check out an episode featuring John Malkovich as a host. During Malkovich’s week on set, Franco got interviews and shot plenty of footage covering the very first moments of the week all the way to the end of filming the actor’s episode.
According to The Wrap, in 2010, Franco was able to preview the documentary, called Saturday Night, at the Tribeca Film Festival. The documentary didn’t get picked up for distribution, and since then, it hasn’t been available via any outlets. That will all change on Friday.
It's hard to tell how good Franco's directorial skills were back in 2008, but the documentary should be worth a watch, considering it chronicles the week prior to veteran cast member Amy Poehler's final contributions as a player on the show. Additionally, Malkovich's episode featured the "Jizz In My Pants" short, and also stars cast members Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Fred Armisen, Seth Meyers, Jason Sudeikis, Will Forte, Andy Samberg, Darrell Hammond, and Kenan Thompson.
I’m sure Hulu’s decision to air the documentary was probably not coordinated with NBC and all of the stuff Saturday Night Live has coming up this season, but it should be a nice fit, nonetheless. Hulu is the exclusive home of Saturday Night Live content, so it makes sense that Hulu Plus is picking up Saturday Night to stream this weekend. Friday is a great day to do it, as well, as NBC’s late night sketch comedy series is set to launch Season 40 this Saturday. To celebrate the big anniversary year, NBC also has a 40th Anniversary special planned for February 15, that will feature stars, hosts and musical guests from years past.
If you just want to catch the NBC series, Saturday Night Live will premiere on September 27 at 11:35 p.m. EST. Chris Pratt will host the first episode, and Sarah Silverman and Bill Hader will take the stage in the coming weeks.
