Immediately after Kamala Harris selected Tim Walz as her running mate, many on the internet zeroed in on Steve Martin as the perfect candidate to portray the Minnesota governor on the upcoming season of Saturday Night Live. Lorne Michaels apparently thought so too, and reached out to the longtime SNL associate to offer him the gig. Unfortunately, Martin has decided to pass.
Martin informed the Los Angeles Times of his decision in an interview on Thursday. “I wanted to say no and, by the way, he wanted me to say no. 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.”
“It’s ongoing [commitment],” Martin added. “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.”
Saturday Night Live is set to return for its historic 50th season on September 28th. Former cast member Maya Rudolph is on board to play Vice President Kamala Harris through the election.
As for Martin, he can next be seen on the new season of Only Murders in the Building, which is slated to premiere on August 27th on Hulu. As one of SNL’s most beloved figures, he’ll also surely pop up on the new season as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.