On Tuesday, after days of promising he would reveal his running mate, Joe Biden finally delivered, revealing that the other half of his ticket would be California senator Kamala Harris. The news was met with much joy; she’s both the first African-American and the first Asian-American to be chosen as a vice presidential hopeful on a major party ticket, to name two things. Many people, though, couldn’t help but think of something a touch less serious: What does Maya Rudolph, the SNL vet who’s memorably played her on her former program, think about the news?
Well, now we know. The actress and performer was on a group Zoom call for Entertainment Weekly, alongside Angela Bassett, Wanda Sykes, Dan Levy, Ramy Youssef, and Giancarlo Esposito, when she learned the news. And here was her initial response: “Oh sh*t!”
Granted, she didn’t have much time to prepare for a response, much less fully wrap around her head that she may not only have to reprise the role but do so during a pandemic. Still, she was able to respond to that possibility.
“I love going to the show. Any excuse I can get, I love,” Rudolph told everyone. “I just didn’t really anticipate traveling during a pandemic, but if there’s anyone that can work it out I’m sure Lorne [Michaels] has some sort of invisible helicopter that can get me there.”
She continued:
“Ever since I was a kid, truly, I wanted to be on any kind of SCTV, Saturday Night Live, and I can’t believe that I got to work there, and I can’t believe that it’s my family still … I’m so thrilled to even be associated with the show and that I got to go back. It’s like the gift that keeps on giving. Honestly, it’s my favorite place to play.”
Still, she couldn’t hide how flabbergasted she was by the news. “I’m as surprised as you are, guys,” Rudolph said. “That’s spicy.”
You can watch the full video of the moment during the Zoom call when Rudolph heard the news over at EW.
