Steve Martin Won’t Be Playing Tim Walz on ‘SNL’ After All

Kalia Richardson
·2 min read
Steve Martin, Tim Walz - Credit: Monica Schipper/Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images
Steve Martin, Tim Walz - Credit: Monica Schipper/Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images

After a conversation with Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels on Wednesday, Steve Martin won’t be starring as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who has been tapped as Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris’ running mate. The SNL producer offered Martin the role, the Los Angeles Times reported, but Martin turned it down.

“I wanted to say no and, by the way, he wanted me to say no,” Martin told the LA Times. “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.”

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Maya Rudolph recently answered the comedy gods prayers with her decision to return to Saturday Night Live as Vice President Kamala Harris. And following the announcement Tuesday of Walz as Harris’ running mate, online users had begun to brainstorm who could star as Rudolph’s right-hand man. Martin played along giving fans some hope (though he officially declined later to Michaels), posting on Threads Tuesday: “I just learned that Tim Walz wants to go on the road with Marty Short.”

Martin’s wispy white hair and toothy grin have an uncanny resemblance to Walz, with one X user saying, “SNL get Steve Martin on the phone NOW” and another Thread user adding, “I don’t know who made this meme but this is the only way,” featuring an image of Rudolph and Martin on a campaign flyer.

Martin has been on the comedy sketch show many times before. He’s appeared on SNL at least 35 times, including serving as a host 16 times. Although never a cast member, Martin first appeared in 1976, and last hosted in 2022 alongside Only Murders in the Building co-star Martin Short.

Short and Martin, who became close friends on the set of Western comedy Three Amigos in 1986, have toured as a comedic duo for years, from the the two-sided interview stage show A Very Stupid Conversation to Netflix comedy special An Evening You’ll Forget for the Rest of Your Life (2018), which Rolling Stone called “wryly hip, cozily nostalgic but, also, unexpectedly touching.” Short and Martin are also on their “The Dukes of Funnytown” tour, which has dates through November and stops in cities like Nashville, Louisville, and Detroit.

This article was updated to reflect that Martin has declined the role.

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