Saturday Night Live veteran Andy Samberg opens up about his experience impersonating Nicolas Cage straight to his face.
Per Entertainment Weekly, Samberg discussed his time working with Cage on SNL during a recent appearance on Conan O’Brien’s Conan O’Brien Need a Friend podcast. ‘I obviously didn’t want him to hate me because I respect his work so much,” Samberg said of the Hollywood icon, who appeared as himself during a Weekend Update segment alongside Samberg’s own iteration of Nicolas Cage.
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“And the reason I have an impression is because I’ve watched a thousand hours of Nic Cage. It’s embedded in me somewhere,” Samberg added. He went on to state that Cage was the “nicest” during their appearance together, noting that the Academy Award-winner “went all in.” Samberg added, “It feels crackly and fun, and he was just a joy.” The Weekend Update segment in question aired during a 2012 episode of SNL, which marked Cage’s second time on the long-running sketch comedy series after hosting the show twenty years prior in 1992.
Samberg joined the cast of Saturday Night Live as a featured player and writer back in 2005. In that time, Samberg established himself as a profoundly capable comedian, and quickly rose through the ranks to become one of the show’s breakout stars. Samberg frequently collaborated with other SNL stars such as Chris Parnell, as well as critically-acclaimed musicians such as T-Pain and Justin Timberlake, often with his musical comedy group The Lonely Island. Samberg left SNL in 2012, and has since gone on to star in other hit series such as Brooklyn Nine-Nine, in which he appeared in every episode of its staggering 153-episode run.
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What the Future Could Hold for Saturday Night Live
Currently, on the verge of its 51st season in fifty years, SNL has been on the air longer than most shows could possibly last. That being said, fans and insiders alike have begun to openly question who, if anyone, might take over when creator and producer Lorne Michaels makes his inevitable exit from the series. Back in July, SNL legend Molly Shannon responded to the notion that longtime star and near-lifelong comedy veteran Kenan Thompson could fill that role, saying, “I love this idea.” Shannon went on to say that Thompson is “the greatest,” and remarked that the child actor turned comedy icon is “so talented.”
Source: Entertainment Weekly