SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night Discussion

[DanaK]

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Peacock 4-part doc series that premieres January 16 2025

The Saturday Night Live Four-Part Series, From Academy and Emmy Award Winner Morgan Neville, Will Premiere Exclusively on Peacock on Jan 16, 2025

Featuring more than 60 contributors, including SNL alumni, and covering decades of SNL history, SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night offers a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most iconic hallmarks of the American late night comedy institution. Executive produced by Academy and Emmy Award winner Morgan Neville, each episode reveals new insights into the show's rich history, pulling back the curtain on everything from the writers' room to the famed audition process.

Full press release http://thefutoncritic.com/news/2024/12/11/peacock-announces-new-original-docuseries-snl50-beyond-saturday-night-in-celebration-of-snls-50th-season-227413/20241211peacock01/

[BetterButter]

 

[Sweet-tea]

Anyone else watching this? One thing I noticed in watching the first part is most of the auditions were not impressive to me. I wouldn't have hired any of these people. I'm not a casting director though, so perhaps I'm missing something. 

I wish they had showed audition clips of the original cast. I've only watched part of this, so perhaps they will later. 

[khyber]

Just saw the first episode and really enjoyed it.  I can't believe they passed on Jim Carrey. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

This was very dissatisfying.

I mean, one whole episode dedicated to just Cow Bell? Please.

And it looked like focus was on the last 20 years or so, instead of the 50. Where were the interviews with Martin Short, Billy Crystal (aside from the one minute in the final episode), Steve Martin, Jane Curtin, Dan Ackroyd, EDDIE MURPHY?!!!

Or I don't know, talk MORE about Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks instead of the last minute how them joining, along with Dana saved the show?

We got more of Joe Piscopo, Eddie, and Jane in the music documentary, and as I stated there, some of the material could have been used here.

I wanted to hear and see more about the early years and the years with Dana, Phil, Jane, Michael, and then Darrell Hammond? 

What about Chris Rock? Adam Sandler? Or Al Franken when he was also in the sketches and not just writing for the show?

Pshaw!

Edited February 4 by GHScorpiosRule

[absnow54]

This series should have been longer so they could properly feature each era. I didn’t mind the concept of picking a single sketch or season to center the episode around, I just wish there were more episodes that hit on the series’ highs and lows.

The cast auditions and writing cycle felt like a different doc. I would have liked an episode on the costuming department and the set designers and other parts of the production crew to showcase the process for the various sketches they’ve accomplished. 

[SoMuchTV]

I wish the episode on the writers had included even a mention of Julio Torres. He’s the only writer whose work stood out enough to be recognizable to me (e.g. Wells for Boys), and he definitely went on to do some interesting stuff. His latest (I think) project was on MAX (or HBO? I’m never sure) so I wonder if there’s some conflict with Peacock/NBC. 

[DoctorAtomic]

I found the writers' episode quite lacking. They had some of the top writers on, and didn't have them talk about some of their indelible sketches? I suppose the first five years have been really drilled down already, but you have Zweibel and Downey on. They could have talked more. Paula Pell was on for a long time. She didn't have any particular sketch stories?

I was surprised there was nothing about writing for Update. I thought Downey wrote update with Norm, and that was an interesting time because of OJ. That would have been really interesting. 

I'm not sure why you can't have 90 minute - 2 hour documentaries on a show that's been on 50 years. And only 4 episodes. 

On 2/3/2025 at 8:27 PM, GHScorpiosRule said:

Or I don't know, talk MORE about Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks instead of the last minute how them joining, along with Dana saved the show?

I mean, if they did a single episode on cowbell, they could have done one on Phil Hartman. 

Extending to a two hour episode, Carvey has talked about on the podcast how they were given a short order for his first season (12) because they had to kill basically every minute or the show would have really been canceled. I'm sure there's tons you could talk about there. 

I never thought season 11 was as bad as they made it out to be. I suppose the dichotomy of the titans from season 10 and starting literally from scratch had something to do with it, but you look at Randy Quaid, and you can make an argument he was a proto-Phil Hartman, and there's a lot you can talk about in that regard if you have more time to talk season 12.