Bill Murray says Kenan Thompson or Bill Hader should play him in an SNL movie
He would also accept Kristen Wiig or Amy Poehler, Murray said on the red carpet for Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
Bill Murray was on the red carpet this weekend, doing his part to promote rampant nostalgia fest Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. Given that the film is co-written by Jason Reitman, son of Murray’s long-time collaborator Ivan Reitman, talk on the red carpet inevitably turned to Reitman’s latest directorial project: SNL 1975, a biopic about the very first episode of Murray’s old TV stomping grounds, Saturday Night Live.
In a quick interview with ET, Murray noted with a chuckle that Reitman, who he’s known for most of his life, has been “picking his brain” about SNL history since he was a little kid. (Stating that anything Murray knows about those old days, Reitman does now, too.) He also stated a certain happiness that the film’s focus on the show’s very first night of broadcast means he’s out of the line of fire, only catching a namecheck, since he didn’t join the cast until being brought on as a replacement for Chevy Chase in early 1977. Which didn’t stop ET’s Rachel Smith from asking Murray who should play him if he did get a cameo in the movie, and getting a pretty Bill Murray answer back: Kenan Thompson, maybe?
Or Bill Hader. Or Kristen Wiig, or Amy Poehler. You’d be forgiven for thinking Murray was just listing favorite cast members from the show’s long history, or just fucking with Smith. But honestly, we can kind of see it: All four named performers have a twin gift for going deadpan or manic as the sketch demands, and all four exhibit a total commitment to the bit that’s very Murray-esque. Who knows? Maybe Reitman’s Sony movie will be a hit, and he’ll get a greenlight for SNL 1976, and Murray’s recommendations can actually come to fruition.