It was obviously a pretty big deal when US President Joe Biden announced that he was stepping down from his re-election campaign and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic presidential nominee. But, in addition to Charli XCX saying Harris "IS brat," it was an even bigger deal when Maya Rudolph quickly signed on to play the politician on Saturday Night Live throughout the election season.
With Harris having named Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her vice presidential nominee this week, the internet has eagerly cast wholesome funnyman Steve Martin to portray the Midwestern lawmaker on SNL. The comedian himself has heard you, yes, and has now responded to the people's pleas for him to play Walz.
UPDATE (8/8, 9:20 a.m. ET): In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Martin revealed that Lorne Michaels called to offer him the role, but he turned it down. "I wanted to say no and, by the way, he wanted me to say no," the actor told the publication. "I said, 'Lorne, I'm not an impressionist. You need someone who can really nail the guy.' I was picked because I have gray hair and glasses."
"It's ongoing," Martin added of the SNL gig. "It's not like you do it once and get applause and never do it again. Again, they need a real impressionist to do that. They're gonna find somebody really, really good. I'd be struggling."
"I just learned that Tim Walz wants to go on the road with Marty Short," Martin posted on Threads, referring to his longtime partner in comedic crime and Only Murders in the Building co-star Martin Short.
CNN opened up the debate on who should play Walz, citing Vanity Fair's nomination of Al Franken, Jim Gaffigan and The Office's Jim O'Heir alongside Martin. "I don't mind being in the mix but that's the best pic of me that they could come up with?" O'Heir wrote on Twitter. Damn it, Jerry!