SNL’s Season 40 has featured a couple of big hosts so far, but neither Chris Pratt nor Sarah Silverman is nearly as exciting as Bill Hader’s big return to the show that made him a household name. This week, NBC released a first look at this Saturday’s big SNL episode. Understandably, Hader’s been paired up with his former co-worker and veteran SNL cast member Kenan Thompson in the promos, which you can view, below.
A lot of times the SNL promos are just quick windows into the host’s personality, but Hader is a pro. In the short segments, he does a goofy impression of Kenan that reminds me of Rob Riggle’s impression of Jonah Hill in 22 Jump Street. In another bit, Hader also pops up in an ugly letterman’s jack, reminiscing about the times he used to stroll down SNL’s halls. There are also jokes about Hader’s “upcoming album” and the “What Up With That” sketch he used to do with Kenan back in the day. My personal favorite moment is when the two men are just hanging out, talking about what’s new on the set of Saturday Night Live. Here’s Kenan’s response.
“They renovated the bathroom, there’s spaghetti and meatballs in the cafeteria and we got a ton of black people now.”
Kenan does ask Hader if he’s ready to bust out some old characters, to which Hader responds, “Nah, I’m just going to hang out, keep it cazh, hombre.” I would be willing to bet he will actually pull out a few signatures. I’m personally hoping to see reporter Herb Welch, but the real question is whether or not Hader will pull out Stefon. John Mulaney and Hader created Stefan together, but now Mulaney has moved on to his own series on Fox. Additionally, Hader also used to perform Stefon when Seth Meyers was the Weekend Update host, and he hasn’t returned to the sketch since Meyers left last year. Michael Che and Colin Jost could use the Weekend Update boost, but I’m not sure that they’ll get it. It would almost be weird to have Stefon without the Stefon/Meyers romance.
Saturday Night Live’s October 11 episode marks the first time that Hader is returning to the series since he left in 2013. He’s currently promoting his new film The Skeleton Twins, so his appearance isn’t totally random. And he’s pretty much guaranteed to be better than Sarah Silverman’s oddball episode last week, although I can’t say I am nearly as excited for Hozier as I was for Maroon 5.
NBC’s SNL airs Saturday nights at 11:30 p.m. ET.
