The recently announced Saturday Night Like U.K. is a “terrible idea,” Oliver told Meyers on Late Night without a second of hesitation. The U.K. has “had sketch comedy before” (an understatement, obviously) and besides, “Saturday Night Live is such a unique group… it’s a cult.”
“I’m trying to not say the word,” Oliver continued, before immediately saying it two more times: “It’s a cult, and so, I don’t know how you can impose that cult on the U.K.” Okay, so Oliver clearly doesn’t like SNL, but he does actually have some points to back it up. Oliver specifically took issue with the show’s compulsory Tuesday all-nighters, writing off the tradition as “ridiculous.”
“I’m saying that’s the kind of thing a cult leader would make you do,” he explained. When Meyers admitted that he guessed a “lot of great sketch comedy has come out of places where people don’t stay up all night,” Oliver responded that it’s been proven that SNL is the “outlier.” “It doesn’t have to be dictated to the day that you must not sleep on that day or the great leader will be irritated,” he said.
It’s safe to say that Oliver won’t be adding the title of repertory player to his résumé any time soon, but whether he likes it or not, SNL is officially coming to British broadcaster Sky in 2026. Unsurprisingly, the “great leader” (i.e. Lorne Michaels) will be involved as executive producer as the new commune hides in plain sight. If you think about it, the Rajneeshees from Wild Wild Country always wore red or orange and SNL members always say “Live from New York (or London now) it’s Saturday night!” That’s basically a mantra. How did we miss the signs?
