In a new Wall Street Journal interview, Will Ferrell opened up about his last “Saturday Night Live” performance, and where “SNL” creator Lorne Michaels ranks him among stars of the sketch show.
“SNL,” the multiple award-winning sketch comedy and variety television series, has been on screens since October 11, 1975. And since then, has birthed some of the hugest stars Hollywood knows today, including Eddie Murphy, Jimmy Fallon, Chris Rock and more. While it may be difficult for fans to choose their favorite skit actor, Michaels alluded that there’s three all-stars, and Will Ferrell — who left the show after his seventh season in 2002, is one of them.
Ferrell, who stars in “Spirited” and will be on the cover of WSJ’s December-January issue opened up about being one of Lorne’s most valued comedic acts. He says he knew as his seventh season on the show was approaching that it was “a good time to go.”
“You sit down with Lorne Michaels at your last show, and he says—which is one of my favorite Lorne comments, because it’s an absolutely amazing compliment and at the same time there’s still some instability to it—‘I have to say, I have to put you in the top three of anyone ever having done the show. Where in that top three—I can’t tell you,” Ferrell said.
Ferrell continued: “I was like, ‘Thanks. Wow, that’s great…. Oh, I guess. Am I third?’ Look, I have some talent. I knew there’d be people funnier than me, and I’d probably be funnier than other people. But I [also] knew no one would commit more than me. That’s the one thing I could control.”
Ferrell’s interview is featured in an article set to debut in WSJ Magazine’s October issue, which will be available Saturday, Dec. 10.
