Seeing yourself portrayed during what was probably one of the most stressful moments of your career must be disorienting— especially when the moment was the series premiere of Saturday Night Live. From now until summer hits, SNL nostalgia will be nonstop as the show celebrates its 50th season. In conjunction with the anniversary of the first episode, Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night is bringing the 90 minutes of anxiety in live show pre-production to a cinema near you. How has the cast of the original SNL felt about a new gen of actors reliving their panic attacks from 50 years ago? Has it become a fond memory they can laugh at or do they shudder when they hear the words “30 Rock”? Here’s how the original cast has reacted to the film so far.
Dan Aykroyd
Laraine Newman
Chevy Chase
Cory Michael Smith, who plays Chase in the film, confirmed to People that Chase has seen the film but didn’t share what the actor thought of his portrayal. He explained, “I do hope that he saw a younger version of himself, which maybe that’s a joyful experience or not. But this man played such a huge part in me wanting to be a performer and loving movies, so it was an honor to play him.”