Alec Baldwin still hasn’t perfected his Donald Trump impression ahead of Saturday Night Live’s premiere, but he has the confidence of the GOP candidate down pat. We know Baldwin will portray Trump this season, at least for as long as the election lasts, and he’s kicking it off with a debate with Kate McKinnon’s Hillary Clinton on the SNL premiere. Tina Fey suggested Baldwin for the role to SNL head Lorne Michaels, but it would seem that Baldwin is doing it for another reason according to his red carpet chat with Extra:
“That’s what I wanted to do, I wanted to make his wish come true,” said Baldwin, when the reporter mentioned that Trump has said in the past he’d like to see the actor play him. “So when they asked me, I said, ‘I’m only going to do this for Donald.’ I’m doing it for him.”
For Baldwin, he’s all Donald, all the time at the moment and he’s trying to take in as much of the candidate as possible before he hits the stage at 30 Rock for the premiere. He even drops a little hint of his Trump impression, but only in Spanish. If anything, he’s definitely got the pout down and the mannerisms, but hopefully the voice comes around. He’s taking the place of two very good Trump imposters in Taran Killam and Darrell Hammond, so we’ll have to see how he does it tonight.
Has for his views on the real Donald Trump, Baldwin states that he thinks Monday’s debate was the turning point:
“I think the debate really, really crippled him,” said Baldwin, criticizing Trump for saying it was “smart” to not pay taxes…
“If not paying taxes makes you smart, I must be one of the dumbest people in this country,” said Baldwin.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Colin Jost and Michael Che placed a lot of high praise on Baldwin’s Trump performance, noting the similarities while watching Monday’s debate. Hopefully, this is less publicity and more truthful excitement. If we have to put up with Trump on the show, it can at least be funny.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdy-uOjYA-s
(Via The Hollywood Reporter / Extra)
