Andy Samberg has been a Saturday Night Live icon for years, and he absolutely crushed it while being heavily featured during the SNL 50 broadcast. Specifically, the former Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor starred in a sketch about SNL cast members all having anxiety, which Samberg has been candid about experiencing as a cast member, and it's gone viral. After the broadcast, he reunited with some of the biggest names in the show’s history and got a chance to chat with Billy Crystal. So, Samberg took the opportunity to ask about Crystal’s experience with anxiety during his time on the show, and he offered interesting insight.
After the historic television event on the 2025 TV schedule, Andy Samberg and the rest of The Lonely Island recapped their night on The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast. Samberg mentioned chatting with Billy Crystal after his “Anxiety” sketch, which is quickly becoming one of the best SNL digital shorts. He asked the comedian if he ever felt the nerves during his brief stint as a cast member, explaining:
I did. I was very happy I did. I got a chance to chat with Billy Crystal about it. And he was lovely. I had recently met him, I think I mentioned, at one of those SNL gathering photoshoots and was so happy to meet him. I was like, I hope that was OK. He was like, of course he was fine, very gracious about all of it. And I was like, ‘Did you have anxiety when you worked at the show?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, a little.’
The SNL work environment is famously intense, especially considering the stressful production schedule and writing traditions that involve pulling all-nighters in the days leading up to the show. The situation has been known to give cast members anxiety, and many have opened up about their mental health during their time on the show.
For example, Bill Hader has been very vocal about his anxiety while starring on SNL, and the experience was relatable enough to result in a whole sketch about the live-TV stress.
However, not many of the older cast members have talked about it, and Seth Meyers was curious if other people experienced this as well. He said:
Yeah, did Eddie Murphy have anxiety?
Upon reflection, Samberg realized that the pressures he and his fellow cast members had during their tenures were very different from what Crystal went through in the '80s.
The Palm Springs actor explained that the When Harry Met Sally star was a part of one of the best single-season SNL casts, but it was mostly made up of established comedians at the time, who had careers outside the show. As a result, there probably wasn’t as much pressure. He explained:
They were a different thing though because they were like the ringer cast. They had all already had success on their own. He was like, you know you have stage jitters, but it wasn’t the fear of like, ‘Am I gonna make it on the show?’ Because they were all already made.
This was a stark difference from what modern SNL looks like, where the cast is made up mostly of unknown comic minds hoping that the NBC sketch show will be their big break. Their airtime and ability to stay on the show is contingent on how many sketches they are in, the virality of their characters, and their ability to write sketches that end up making the show. It is incredibly tense, and naturally results in some mental health challenges.
Even with anxious cast members, SNL still manages to be funny and relevant every week. The 50th anniversary special might be over, but the show still has plenty of exciting hosts and musical guests for the 50th season to get excited about, so make sure to check out SNL on Saturday at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC. You can also revisit the anniversary broadcast and past seasons with a Peacock subscription.
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