In celebrating Saturday Night Live's 40th anniversary last night, the beloved NBC sketch comedy series also paid tribute to some of the series' better characters. Among the highlights of the event was a "Weekend Update" segment, which brought back Chris Farley's hilariously ridiculous Matt Foley. To put it mildly, the Bridesmaids star really threw herself into the role...
This is not a character just anyone can play. It takes vocal range and a willingness to throw ones body at a piece of furniture, as Matt Foley was known for trashing a set, whether it was a coffee table, a window, or in McCarthey's case, the "Weekend Update" desk. She really goes for it, between the screaming, the pants-shifting and the amazing fall at the end, I'd say she channelled Farley's character as well as anyone could. Of course, there's nothing quite like the original.
Those who enjoyed Saturday Night Live in the early-to-mid-90s, back when Chris Farley was cracking us up on a regular basis, will likely remember one of Farley's best characters, Matt Foley, a motivational speaker who's thirty-five, thrice divorced and living' in a van down by the river. Foley's demonstrated lack of volume control and disregard for personal space made him effective at getting laughs, if not motivating his subjects to avoid his own dismal fate.
Here's a look at one of his best appearances on Saturday Night Live...
Woopsadaisy!
Relatively speaking, David Spade holds up pretty well throughout that particular sketch, but Christina Applegate spends half it with her face hidden behind her hair to hide her laughing. Because how do you not laugh when some guy's screaming motivational words that serve as more of a cautionary tale that'll make anyone want to do anything to avoid living in a van down by the river.
Chris Farley appeared on SNL as a repertory player from 1990 - 1995, after which he left the show to work on his film career, following up Tommy Boy with Black Sheep and Beverly Hills Ninja. The comedian and actor died tragically of a drug overdose in 1997. He is remembered well to many of us as one of the funniest stars of the long-running sketch comedy series, who made us laugh on a regular basis, both on SNL and in his movies...
This was obviously not the only nod to Chris Farley during Saturday Night Live's 40th anniversary special, but having McCarthy tackle the role seems like the best choice, given her own willingness to get wacky and physical in a sketch. McCarthy has hosted Saturday Night Live multiple times, delivering some pretty fantastic sketches. Including this one...
We'll share more videos from SNL40 soon. In the meantime, watch Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon's opening of SNL's 40th anniversary special here.
