Top 10 Times Bill Hader Broke Character on SNL
#10: “Super Showcase Spokesmodels”
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Bill Hader frequently plays game show hosts on “SNL.” While he usually manages to hold it together, this time his co-stars just proved too funny. On a show called “Super Showcase,” Hader plays the host, Carl. He introduces two showcase models, Shonda and Vonda, who tell the contestant all the things she might have won, had she gotten the final question right. However, Shonda and Vonda’s absurd voices and the numerous silly brand-name products they showcase are too much for Hader… and Kristin Wiig… and Maya Rudolph. Granted, if we had to watch Maya Rudolph talk about “Chicken Man” with a straight face, we’d be biting our lips too. How does Vanessa Bayer do it?!
#9: “Short Term Memory Loss Theater”
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In this sketch, Hader plays Dr. Arnold Kitos, whose work with patients suffering from short-term memory loss is “revolutionary” enough to let them perform a play. However, contrary to his claims, the actors must be constantly reminded of their lines, what to do, and even if the play is still going. The performers’ clueless statements are enough that Hader struggles with his own lines sometimes, though more out of a need to contain his laughter. We’d be right there with him in his situation. And thankfully, I don’t have that… uh… what was the next line?
#8: “Hollywood Dish with Scarlett Johansson”
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“Hollywood Dish” is a recurring fictional Hollywood show in which interviewers Anastasia Sticks, played by Kristin Wiig, and Brady Trunk, played by Hader, annoy celebrities or trick them into doing or saying ridiculous things. Their interview with Scarlett Johansson is no exception. While Hader keeps it together for most of the interview, a bit of food comedy makes him lose it. After dousing Wiig with a slushie and a bowl of meatballs during a moment of surprise, Hader shakes and is barely able to hold his look of shock. Personally, we’re shocked that all three performers made it through the rest of the interview.
#7: “Coal Miners”
Coal mining can be a bleak profession. However, in this sketch, Bill Hader plays Levar, a sassy miner whose love of rumors brightens up our day, if not that of his co-workers. Levar shares gossip about his friends, and several townspeople, frequently making use of innuendoes that his fellow miners don’t understand. As hysterical as metaphors like “opening a Capri Sun with an earthworm” are, what makes Hader crack is whenever he has to drink an inexplicable iced coffee or consume a bag of “bebeh carrots.” Hader’s minecart may rattle, but luckily he never goes completely off the tracks.
#6: “Dress Rehearsal: Renaldo and Alexi”
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Sometimes a sketch is such a trainwreck that it never makes it air. Such is the case with “Renaldo and Alexi.” This scene follows a pair of Russian doormen as they tell Christmas stories to children and sometimes adults. However, they don’t do a good job in recounting the famous tales. Part of this is because they clearly heard them third-hand, but their heavy accents also cause Bill Hader and Fred Armisen to break character frequently and dissolve into giggles. On its own, the sketch is just okay. But seeing Hader struggle to keep a straight face while explaining what a snowman is always makes us laugh!
#5: “Royal Family Doctor”
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For this scene, Bill Hader plays an OBGYN who has been chosen for Catherine Middleton, the wife of Prince William. Rupert Smythe Pennington, played by Martin Short, soon arrives to explain the royal protocol for examining a royal… ahem! Short’s over-the-top accent, as well as his numerous euphemisms for the female anatomy make for some hysterical comedy. Hader plays the straight man, and we have to admire him for keeping as much of a straight face as he does! But even he can’t hold it together for the duration, and Short, and later Fred Armisen as the late Queen Elizabeth II, seem determined to make Hader crack.
#4: “Girlfriends Game Night”
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This gutbuster of a sketch sees a group of ladies gather for a game of Uno. However, they’re annoyed when Jeanie brings her husband, Horace. Not only is he an older man, he’s a MUCH older man. Confined to a motorized wheelchair, Horace rockets around the apartment set, even as his expression barely moves. And then his ED medication kicks in, so he and Jeanie uhhhhh, “make use of the opportunity” in front of her friends. While Hader shockingly manages to hold on for most of the scene, when his co-stars start to go, so does he. And so does Horace, for that matter…
#3: “Scared Straight with Betty White”
“Scared Straight” is a recurring sketch in which several teenagers are lectured by convicts, generally led by Kenan Thompson, who try to frighten them into not turning towards crime. However, the teens often poke holes in their anecdotes, which are often lifted directly from popular movies. Hader usually breaks during the sketches. But our pick for the best time is when Betty White guest hosts. Watching the elderly woman try to act tough is funny enough, but when she gets up close and personal with Hader and begins playfully smacking him around, he can barely keep the giggles in! If breaking during a scene were a punishable offense, Hader would’ve gone straight to jail!
#2: “The Californians”
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This fictional soap opera is one of the funniest recurring sketches on “SNL,” so it’s no surprise that nearly everyone breaks character multiple times in every installment. “The Californians”’ cast almost all speak with absurd, barely comprehensible valley girl accents, and seem obsessed with California’s freeway routes over any drama. Hader’s character, Devin, is a handyman and is involved in several affairs. But while Devin may be good at fixing things, Hader can’t stop breaking character, but we love him for it, as his giggles make these already uproarious sketches even funnier. Even the first installment of “The Californians” has Hader barely able to breathe! He should be careful going home on the 405 North like that.
#1: Stefon
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Perhaps Bill Hader’s most famous character, Stefon is a frequent correspondent on “Weekend Update.” While he’s ostensibly there to give holiday tips for tourists, Stefon instead launches into pitches for outrageous and decidedly adult clubs with bizarre features. However, because writer John Mulaney would switch up the script just before air, Bill Hader always breaks character as Stefon, as he reads out something absurd for the first time. Some notable examples are when Mulaney appears in person, or when he brought up Dan Cortese repeatedly. Breaking character is so built into Stefon’s appearances that covering his mouth to hide his laughter became part of his character. And while New York’s hottest club may change, its funniest club-goer will always be Stefon!
