Steve Martin turns down offer from Lorne Michaels to play Kamala Harris’ VP pick Tim Walz on ‘SNL’: ‘I’d be struggling’
nypost.comSteve Martin won’t be playing Tim Walz on season 50 of “SNL” despite fans outright begging him to do so. Martin spoke with the late night sketch show’s creator and producer Lorne Michaels after news broke that Kamala Harris chose the Minnesota governor and Martin look-alike as her vice presidential running mate but “politely and promptly” turned him down, according to The Los Angeles Times. “I wanted to say no and, by the way, he wanted me to say no,” Martin said of his call with Michaels.“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.”The time commitment required to play a character like Walz — who would likely be recurring through the start of the season — was also a factor in Martin’s decision. “It’s ongoing,” he explained. “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.” News of Martin turning down the “SNL” gig comes the same day as the funnyman posted a joke on Threads, winking at the resemblance between him and Walz. “I just learned that Tim Walz wants to go on the road with Marty Short,” he wrote.
Martin and his “Only Murders in the Building” co-star Martin Short are currently in the middle of their “Dukes of Funnytown” tour.
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