During the weeks leading up to the SNL 50^th anniversary, the show was mythologized across podcasts, documentaries on Peacock, and even a feature film. A consistent feature of this work was a description of the unique work environment and production workflow of the show. SNL cast, crew, writers and host work six consecutive days until the show airs on Saturday night. Cast and writers competitively pitch their sketch ideas in front of the host early in the week and then present their best efforts at a “table read” on Tuesday. Selected sketches go to a dress rehearsal where they can still be cut for time or lack of audience reaction prior to the airing of the live show. The cast and crew take Sunday off (following a late after-party on Saturday night) and return Monday to repeat the process. Many of the cast and crew work late into the night during the work week in preparation for these various deadlines. 

These unusual working hours and competitive work conditions were lamented and valorized in equal parts in the specials released prior to the SNL 50^th. The longevity of this production schedule and the preservation of these working conditions is notable for the way they maintain a mythology about the creative process and the definition of what makes a talented comedian. In most professional fields, it is unusual for a workplace to operate in the same way it began 50 years prior. Perhaps Lorne Michael’s long stewardship or the lavish success of some of the writers and performers have been the reason that little has changed in SNL’s production culture. Too often creative fields foster overly stressful work environments as a kind of gatekeeping mechanisms that ensures that only certain types of personalities can succeed. This leads to a homogenization of the workforce and narrows the definition of what can be considered “talent.”  

One of the SNL alumni podcasts that has been reflecting on their time on the show prior to the 50^th celebration is produced by the Lonely Island comedy team of Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, and Andy Samberg. On their podcast, the Lonely Island team is frank about how stressful they found working at SNL. It is no surprise that one of their contributions to the SNL 50^th was a video about the generation-spanning anxiety of working on the show. The digital short even includes the suggestion that this anxiety is partly responsible for the substance abuse that has plagued generations of SNL cast and writers. While the piece is not exactly a critique of SNL’s “meritocracy,” it does detail the harms both physical and psychological of the work schedule. At the very least, the video offers a warning that comedians at SNL must navigate an anxious environment that imposes a mental strain that will cause “stress dreams for the rest of (their lives).”