Kumail Nanjiani's First Saturday Night Live Appearance Earned Him An Apology From Jason Sudeikis
Having transformed his body to play superhero Kingo in Marvel's "Eternals," then reinventing himself for Hulu's "Welcome To Chippendales" series, Kumail Nanjiani has truly ascended to star status. Since his 2017 autobiographical rom-com "The Big Sick" became a hit, Nanjiani has proven himself a versatile actor, capable of much more than the stereotypical roles he was previously offered. As he told GQ, "With brown people, there are very specific roles that we used to get. Either we're terrified or we're causing terror." Now, having become Marvel's first South Asian superhero and having consistently subverted Hollywood stereotypes, Nanjiani has come a long way.
But before he ascended in such spectacular fashion, Nanjiani spent many years as a standup comedian trying to break into the industry upon which he'd eventually have such an impact. Having moved to the states from his native Pakistan in the late '90s, the aspiring comedian eventually found himself in New York City, where he would perform gigs and take on the odd acting job.
One such job saw him visit the hallowed Studio 8H, home of NBC's long-running comedy institution, "Saturday Night Live." Back in 2008, he was invited by a writer to play a small part in a sketch during the show's 34th season. He accepted, and some nine years before the comedian himself would host the legendary sketch show, he wound up playing a small, two-line role alongside then-host, James Franco. And thanks to Jason Sudeikis, who also appeared in his sketch, that part was even smaller than it would have been otherwise.
Jason Sudeikis threw Kumail Nanjiani off his lines
On September 20, 2008, James Franco hosted the second episode of "Saturday Night Live" season 34. In a sketch in which Franco plays a New York Times editor preparing his staff for a six-week investigative trip to Alaska, Kumail Nanjiani appears as one of the journalists gathered in the meeting room. In the skit, Jason Sudeikis basically plays Jason Sudeikis but ostensibly he's Ted Boucher, a Times staffer who in 1988, "spent the summer as a reporter with the Anchorage Daily News," thereby establishing himself as the person who knows, "more about Alaska than anyone the Times has ever heard of." The sketch consists of journalists asking ridiculously uninformed questions about Alaska, while Sudeikis tries to field them.
Nanjiani spoke about his experience with "SNL" alums Dana Carvey and David Spade for their "Fly on the Wall" podcast, where he revealed that his two-line part actually started as a three-line part:
"I have three lines, and at dress [rehearsal] [...] Sudeikis messed up his line, and it threw me so much in dress that I messed up my line. I just literally stumbled my words. So then suddenly when I get the script for air, now I have two lines instead of three lines."
Clearly having taken note of his own mistake, the "Ted Lasso" star actually apologized to Nanjiani prior to performing the sketch live. As Nanjiani explained:
"I remember it was really cool, we're starting the sketch, I don't know Sudeikis at all, he's there while we're about to do the live [show], and he looks at me and he says, 'I'm sorry.' He apologized to me. It meant a lot to me."
'I want to be great at the stuff that I love'
Appearing on "Saturday Night Live" had to be nerve-wracking even before Jason Sudeikis' mistake. The show is notorious for making even established cast members perpetually nervous, with former repertory player Melissa Villaseñor revealing how she left the show after experiencing panic attacks. "Barry" star Bill Hader also told The Hollywood Reporter how he, too experienced panic attacks during his time at 30 Rock.
And although Nanjiani didn't have the pressure of being a cast member, it must have been an intimidating experience all the same. Thankfully, he told David Spade and Dana Carvey that he also had pleasant experiences with Will Forte, Darrell Hammond, and Kristen Wiig during his brief stint as an "SNL" extra. "I was just touched that they went out of their way to make me feel confident, comfortable, and welcome," said the "Big Sick" star.
Interestingly enough, he actually turned down an "SNL" writing job some years later, telling comedian Bert Kreischer that he was hired for a week trial before being offered the chance to stay for the rest of the season. Ultimately, he turned the job down, telling Kreischer, "I'm not good at sketch [comedy]. It's also not something that I want to break my back being good at. I want to be great at the stuff that I love." That's a philosophy that's served him well ever since, as it seems neither Jason Sudeikis' botched line reading nor turning down an "SNL" writing gig hurt Nanjiani in the long run. The comedian eventually hosted "SNL" in 2017, fronting an episode that tackled racism, sexual assault, and "It." Since then, things have only improved for Nanjiani, as his evolution from "SNL" extra to movie star continues.