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Saturday Night Live/American Idol
| American Idol Saturday Night Live | |
 | |
| Actor(s) | Jimmy Fallon (Ryan Seacrest; 2 appearances) Seth Meyers (Ryan Seacrest; 1 appearance + 1 OS) Bill Hader (Ryan Seacrest; 1 appearance) Dean Edwards (Randy Jackson; 1 appearance) Tracy Morgan (Randy Jackson; 1 OS) Kenan Thompson (Randy Jackson; 3 appearances + 1 OS) Amy Poehler (Paula Abdul; 4 appearances + 3 OS) Chris Parnell (Simon Cowell; 3 appearances + 2 OS) Jason Sudeikis (Simon Cowell; 2 appearances) |
| Creator(s) | |
| First Appearance | SP10 - SNL Weekend Update Halftime Show |
| Last Appearance | 32x19 - Molly Shannon/Linkin Park |
| Episode Count | 6 + 1 special & 2 outside sketches |
American Idol is a reality show which airs on FOX and has been parodied several times on Saturday Night Live.
Contents |
Basic Information
The TV series American Idol, which features a singing contest between contestants voted upon by the audience, debuted in 2002 and quickly became FOX's most popular show—indeed the most popular show in America. Its most popular feature is the critiques of the contestants by judges Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell, who had created the series in the UK and brought it to America and is noted for his particularly biting, even cruel commentaries. The series features Ryan Seacrest as its host.
Due to its immense runaway popularity, it seemed inevitable that SNL would parody the show, but the revolving door nature of the casting of the sketch reflected SNL's own cast changes over the years. As of 2007, only Amy Poehler has remained constant as Abdul (although there is one occurrence of the sketch which features neither Poehler nor a Jackson impression, and in which Chris Parnell plays Cowell alone, although Jimmy Fallon provided the voice of Seacrest).
Poehler first appeared as Abdul in the Weekend Update segment of the SNL Weekend Update Halftime Show, in which she was joined by Parnell as Cowell and Tracy Morgan as Jackson. For the parody sketch's first official appearance and first appearance in the series, Morgan was replaced by Dean Edwards, and Fallon joined as Seacrest. In the second appearance, neither Jackson nor Abdul were parodied, and only Fallon's voice was heard. The third appearance again saw Poehler and Parnell, but Jackson had again been recast, this time played by Kenan Thompson, and nobody portrayed Seacrest. Poehler, Parnell and Thompson made their final appearances together as the three judges in a parody of Primetime Live for episode Johnny Knoxville/System of a Down, in which Seth Meyers was cast as Seacrest and the real-life Abdul crashed the sketch.
After Parnell's final appearance as Cowell, the sketch disappeared for a full season and was not seen again until episode Drew Barrymore/Lily Allen, in which Poehler, Thompson and Meyers returned, and Jason Sudeikis donned the role of Cowell. Ryan Seacrest was replaced once again by Bill Hader when the sketch acted as the cold opening for Molly Shannon/Linkin Park.
Appearances
- SP10 - SNL Weekend Update Halftime Show: "Weekend Update." (Morgan, Parnell & Poehler)
- 28x19 - Adrien Brody/Sean Paul and Wayne Wonder. (Edwards, Fallon, Parnell & Poehler)
- 29x10 - Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey/G-Unit with 50 Cent. (Fallon & Parnell)
- 30x11 - Paris Hilton/Keane. (Parnell, Poehler & Thompson)
- 30x18 - Johnny Knoxville/System of a Down: "Primetime Live." (Meyers, Parnell, Poehler & Thompson.)
- 32x12 - Drew Barrymore/Lily Allen: "Puppy Idol." (Meyers, Poehler, Sudeikis & Thompson) The judges eviscerate contestants who are various animals, including cats, dogs, a turtle, fish in a barrel and a donkey.
- 32x19 - Molly Shannon/Linkin Park: "Mary Katherine Gallagher." (Hader, Poehler, Sudeikis & Thompson) Before Seacrest can announce which of the three semi-finalists will be going home, Mary Katherine Gallagher (Shannon) crashes the stage and attempts to convince the judges that she shouldn't have been cut in her first audition.
