Top 10 Times SNL Cast Members Didn't Want To Work With Hosts
#9: Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase earned a reputation for being difficult to work with as evidenced by an altercation that occurred between him and Bill Murray when Chase was a first-time host. Despite this, the former first-season cast member hosted 8 times in total. But, his questionable behavior did eventually earn him what appears to be a lifetime ban on hosting. It seems the final straw came when he reportedly swatted cast member Cheri Oteri in the back of the head during rehearsals. This upset Will Ferrell so much that he complained to Lorne Michaels. Chase has never hosted since, though he has made a number of subsequent cameo appearances. Pete Davidson, who was a cast member decades after Chase, has also spoken out against him.
#8: Paris Hilton
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When Paris Hilton hosted “SNL,” the cast had a bet as to whether or not she would ever ask any of them a personal question. That bet never paid, as the closest she apparently came was asking someone if Maya Rudolph was Italian. When being interviewed by Howard Stern, SNL head writer at the time Tina Fey channeled one of her “Mean Girls” characters by saying the heiress was quote “unbelievably dumb and so proud of how dumb she is” - among other equally rude things. Although Fey eventually walked back the most extreme parts of her statement, she still said that she felt Paris “could not be a worse role model.” So, we guess that’s a “no thanks” from Tina Fey.
#7: Justin Bieber
When cast members Jay Pharoah and Bill Hader were asked who was the worst guest on “Saturday Night Live,” their shared answer was Justin Bieber. Hader clarified that Bieber seemed to be in a bad place earlier in his career and seemed exhausted when he appeared on the show. In other interviews, Hader said he “really didn't enjoy having Justin Bieber around” and that he didn’t appreciate having to deal with the Biebs’ 20-man strong entourage, lamenting having to navigate through them just to get into costume. Clearly, there were at least some “SNL” cast members who were not Beliebers.
#6: Robert Blake
The star of “Baretta” was chosen to host in 1982, and he did, but not without complaint in both directions. Reportedly, Blake was difficult to work with on the set and in the writer’s room, frequently expressing dissatisfaction with the sketches offered to him. Cast member, Gary Kroeger, once handed Blake a script, which Blake read, wadded up, and threw in Kroeger’s face, suggesting that he wipe his behind with it. This event seemed to turn the entire creative team against Blake, and he was banned and has never again been invited to host the show. Of course, this was not even close to the most controversial thing to ever happen to Robert Blake.
#5: Steven Seagal
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It is probably not a great boon to your career to have Lorne Michaels refer to you as the biggest jerk to ever host “SNL,” and that is probably why Steven Seagal is so high on our list. Cast member Tim Meadows once suggested that explaining jokes to Seagal is the same as trying to “explain something to somebody in German if they don't speak German.” Meadows also said that Seagal had that rare combination of lack of understanding comedy, and also being highly critical of the cast and writers who produced it. In this case, the host’s behavior directly led to what is considered one of the worst episodes in the show’s history.
#4: Walter Matthau
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Sometimes even an Academy Award winner can’t quite cut it as an “SNL” host. Walter Matthau was a classic funnyman and the star of such classic films as “The Odd Couple,” “Grumpy Old Men,” and their sequels. But, despite his massive experience in comic movies, his methods were not completely welcome on the set of “Saturday Night Live.” Long-time cast member Jane Curtin once said that he was one of the worst hosts she’d experienced due to his loosey-goosey attitude and what she saw as a lack of respect for the craft of doing a live comedy show. The Academy Award probably soothes that wound, though.
#3: Milton Berle
Lorne Michaels had to be coerced to let Milton Berle, a comedy legend popular since the days of vaudeville, appear on the show because he felt that “SNL” should steer clear of what he saw as a corrupt business. When Uncle Miltie arrived on the set, though, he was beloved for his classic tales of comedy’s history. The trouble started when Berle tried to take over the show as he had been known to do in his past with shows like “Texaco Star Theatre.” From upstaging cast members, to questioning Michaels, to walking around in his underwear, to his questionable monologue, Milton did not mesh with the “SNL” vibe, and so, was never asked back.
#2: Donald Trump
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While running for President in 2015, Donald Trump hosted “SNL” for the second time. He also hosted in 2004, and according to cast member Maya Rudolph, much of the cast was against his hosting even then. She said the cast felt that it was something they did not want to be part of. Seth Meyers suggested that Trump lacked a sense of humor. In Trump’s 2015 hosting appearance, Colin Jost said that the one skit Trump really seemed to like was the one where Cecily Strong and Vanessa Bayer played porn stars endorsing his run for President. Life and art collided, and he apparently loved it.
#1: Elon Musk
When Elon Musk was tapped to host “SNL” in 2021, the cast was generally not shy about making their views known. Some, like Michael Che, had a positive view of the idea. But, when Musk tweeted a cryptic message questioning how live the show actually is, Bowen Yang responded with, “What... does that even mean?” Aidy Bryant retweeted Bernie Sanders in a tweet, which stated that the wealth gap in the U.S. was a “moral obscenity,” a clear shot at billionaire Musk. In the end, though the episode certainly had its weird moments, it has been reported that Musk was very professional and hard-working, and showed great interest in the process. No cap.
