On Tuesday afternoon, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden announced that his pick for vice president is none other than Senator Kamala Harris. While many sang Harris’ praises (if the duo defeats Donald Trump and Mike Pence in November, she will be the first Black vice president and first female vice president in U.S. history), many others pointed out that a very funny lady is about to be pizz-aid because of this big news.
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Maya Rudolph—whose portrayal of Harris on Saturday Night Live this past season earned her an Emmy nomination in the Best Comedy Guest Actress category—was a trending topic Tuesday night after several pointed out that we’ll be seeing a lot more of the comedian whenever SNL starts airing its newest season.
The VP news broke while Rudolph was speaking during a virtual Entertainment Weekly panel with stars including Angela Bassett, Wanda Sykes and Schitt’s Creek’s Daniel Levy. With a mouth-agape surprised face, Rudolph had a few words to say about Harris’ appointment, starting with a resounding “Oh shit!”
“I’m as surprised as you are, guys,” she said, later adding, “That’s spicy.”
“Somebody’s gonna be very busy now,” Sykes joked (glad we all thought the same thing), to which Rudolph responded “ruh-roh.” However, Rudolph continued by saying she’s always happy to go back to her old stomping grounds. While her tenure as an SNL cast member ended in 2007, Rudolph has been invited back as a surprise guest numerous times and also hosted the show in 2012.
“I love going to the show. Any excuse I can get, I love,” she explained. “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.”
“I don’t know that I’m ready to go right this minute, but it’s so nice to have this [Emmy] nomination be associated with [Saturday Night Live] because it’s my true love,” she continued.
Harris spoke to Seth Meyers in October 2019 about Rudolph’s portrayal of her on the sketch comedy series, stating that she is a fan of the actor’s work.
“I fully intend to make sure that she has a good eight years of work on SNL,” she told Meyers with a laugh. Look at that manifestation!
In other Give-Maya-Rudolph-Her-Things news, Rudolph is up against *herself* for the Emmys’ Best Comedy Guest Actress category, thanks to her portrayal of Judge Gen in The Good Place. She is the first actor and first Black actor in Emmys history to be nominated against themselves in a guest acting category.
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