Why Jennifer Aniston turned down a huge role on ‘Saturday Night Live’
Jennifer Aniston has hosted Saturday Night Live on multiple occasions and has accumulated a strong history with the institution over several decades. However, before she was a household name, Aniston was asked to become a series regular but turned down the potentially life-changing opportunity.
One of the biggest shows on television, the sketch comedy series has a habit of launching careers. Eddie Murphy, Bill Murray, Amy Poehler, Adam Sandler, and countless others have all taken the chance offered to them by the TV exposure and become gigantic stars in their own right. The series is, quite simply, the ultimate launchpad for any actor. And the chance for Aniston was a giant one.
At the time, Aniston had appeared in a series of sitcoms such as Molloy and Ferris Bueller, but she was yet to become a star. In her position as an upcoming comedic actor, there was no better place to express the wealth of her talent than Saturday Night Live, but Aniston knew it wasn’t an opening she desired to pursue.
The chance to perform weekly for such a large audience would have surely secured her rising star status, but the actor decided to decline the invite, and instead focus on acting in a more serious capacity. But it wouldn’t be long before comedy came calling again.
Instead, Aniston declined the opportunity and soon appeared in a brand-new sitcom, Friends, which defined her career. However, if she had gone with her head rather than her heart, she’d likely not have appeared as Rachel Green in favour of Saturday Night Live, but her risk paid dividends.
Aniston didn’t see herself as a comedian and was surprised by Lorne Michaels viewing her in that way. During an interview with Howard Stern, she admitted, “I wasn’t upset, I just was thrown,” and added, “I’m not a comedian.”
Although she refused to accept Michaels’s offer, Aniston did contemplate it before eventually coming to her decision. The actor even visited 30 Rock but didn’t feel like it was a suitable working environment. “I didn’t think I’d like that environment,” she added. “I remember showing up and [Adam] Sandler was there and [David] Spade was there.”
In another interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Aniston elaborated on her visit to the SNL offices and revealed she brazenly questioned Lorne about it being a boys club. “That was right before Friends, I remember walking in, and it was [David] Spade and [Adam] Sandler, and I knew those guys forever, and I was so young and dumb, and I went into Lorne’s office, and I was like, ‘I hear women are not respected on this show.’ I don’t remember exactly what I said next, but it was something like, ‘I would prefer if it were like the days of Gilda Radner and Jane Curtin,'” Aniston recalled.
Aniston continued: “I mean, it was such a boys’ club back then, but who the f**k was I to be saying this to Lorne Michaels?! So yes, adorably, that happened, and I’ve hosted Saturday Night Live a couple of times, and I love it so much.”
Ultimately, her decision to turn down a chance to become a regular fixture on Saturday Night Live was the best choice she’s ever made. If Aniston had said yes to Lorne Michaels, it would have prevented her from starring in Friends, which became more of a hit than she could ever have imagined when she first received the script.
