Saturday Night Live launched the careers of copious A-list stars. A lot of that has to do with the influence of series creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels. But not every one of the numerous cast members through SNL's illustrious history has actually gotten along with Lorne. This is certainly true of Bob Odenkirk's time on SNL.
The Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul star has shared deep remorse for what transpired during his time on the show. So, what exactly happened?
Bob Didn't Like Who He Was When On Saturday Night Live
At the beginning of March 2021, Bob Odenkirk went on a promotion tour for his new movie, Nobody. While promoting his action flick, Bob went on PeopleTV Couch Surfing and spoke about his experience as a writer and performer on Saturday Night Live. For those who don't remember, Bob worked there from 1987 and 1991, when he left to work on his acting career. While it was the biggest thing he had done up to that point, Bob claims he made a lot of mistakes while there.
"I was so opinionated. I was a very opinionated comedy writer," Bob said in the interview with PeopleTV. "I was a writer on the show and Lorne would sometimes have me do a part in the scene, a small part like that. And I did, and of course, I was starstruck at Catherine O'Hara, who was just the best. . . . I’m kind of sad right now, and happy. I wish I wasn't such a stuck up young man. I wish I was a sweeter fellow, because I had a great opportunity there. I made the most of it. I learned a lot about comedy writing and I made some great friends for life at that show, but I still wish I'd just handled it better. But don't you always think that about your young self?"
Bob Feels Deep Regret About What He Did To Lorne Michaels
In a March 29th, 2021, interview on The Howard Stern Show, Bob went into detail about his experience on Saturday Night Live as well as his complicated relationship with the insanely successful SNL producer Lorne Michaels.
"Whenever I've read about you, and you talk about Saturday Night Live, and you talk about this regret, I have lived with this same feeling for so many years about so many jobs I've had," Howard Stern said, leading Bob into the topic. "I was always a guy with a chip on my shoulder."
"That was me," Bob Odenkirk admitted.
"You go into Saturday Night Live and Lorne's running around, he's running the show, and you're like, 'Who the f*** is this guy?" Howard said of Bob's first few days at SNL.
"Yeah. that was my first thought," Bob said, laughing uncomfortably.
Howard claimed that he too was like that when he was younger. He'd work at a radio station and just couldn't get over someone else telling him what to do.
"[But] it all comes out of insecurity," Howard said.
"Yes, it all comes out of insecurity, Howard. That's the real truth," Bob said somewhat mournfully. "I just wasn't right for the show at that time and I do wish I could've understood my own psyche, my own psychology better and enjoyed it and embraced it a bit. You know, the show was what it is. That show is a behemoth monster machine that moves forward and you gotta get on board or get out of the way."
On top of this, Bob claimed that very few writers have really 'left their mark' on the show. Meaning, the show always felt like one thing and that almost no writers had marked their territory in a corner of what the show is. And that was Bob's dream. But the show isn't really built for that and Bob couldn't really figure that out.
"I was bad to Lorne and I sat in the back of the room and made wisecracks. During meetings," Bob explained. "He's trying to run a friggin meeting to get this goddamn show up on Saturday night and there's this a**hole, who should be a waiter in Chicago, making wisecracks out of the side of his mouth. Going, 'That scene sucks'."
Howard remarked that Bob must feel a lot of regret about this because Lorne Michael could have been a great ally of Bob's, like he has been for other celebrities. Bob admits this would have been true had he not been so rude to Lorne.
"Lorne loves really great writing and great writers and he supports them. Hey, he let me stay there for four years! That's crazy! This a***hole making wisecracks and not really contributing much."
It's clear that Bob feels regrets about what transpired. So, of course, Howard asked him if he had ever apologized to Lorne about it. Bob says he hasn't run into him and admits that he hasn't apologized to Lorne. Although, he also claimed that he isn't quite sure what Lorne would even do with an apology from him.
Regardless, what's done is done and all Bob can do is learn from his mistakes.
