Molly Shannon recently weighed in on who could one day replace Saturday Night Live creator and producer Lorne Michaels, 80.
During a sit-down for People in 10, the actress and comedian, 60, opened up about who might be up for the role of SNL showrunner when Michaels eventually steps down. Shannon appeared on the late-night sketch comedy series from 1995 to 2001, memorably portraying the character Mary Katherine Gallagher, among countless others.
“It’s his show, his vision,” Shannon said of Michaels, who created SNL in 1975. “There’s no one who could replace him. It would not be the same show. He’s just a one-of-a-kind genius. Brilliant. Smart.”
With that said, Shannon was also asked about whether Kenan Thompson might be a good fit to run the show.
“I love this idea. He’s the greatest — I adore Kenan,” she said of the cast member, who joined SNL in 2003.
Shannon went on to call the former All That star, 47, “so talented,” adding of his taking over for Lorne, “That’s an excellent idea.”
Lorne served as SNL‘s executive producer from 1975 to 1980 before returning to the role in 1985.
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Last year, folks on Reddit weighed in on who they thought would be the best option to replace Lorne if he were to retire after SNL Season 50.
“Tina Fey is the only answer,” one fan declared.
Someone else echoed, “Seems like there are only one or two serious answers and they are 1) Tina Fey and 2) Seth Myers.”
A different Reddit user suggested, “Tina and Kenan share it.”
Another commented, “Serious choice: Robert Smigel. He has experience at SNL and as a writer, director and show runner for Conan. On Smigel’s episode of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend they talked about how in the early years of Late Night they were writing and producing SNL style sketches every night.”
Yet another wrote, “Michael Che. Not joking.”
Meanwhile, someone else shared, “Tina Fey, Seth Meyers, Amy Poehler, and Keenan Thompson are on my personal short list. Those are the well known names though and not sure if they would necessarily want the task as it comes with some obvious personal sacrifices to their own writing, standup, and acting careers.”
Who do you think would be best to step into Michaels’ shoes?