Former artist Will Forte returned to Studio 8H to make his hosting debut with musical guest Menskin. The award-winning comedian talks about his big comeback in his opening monologue, sharing his joy in hosting SNL for the first time. Forte joked that he wasn't "bitter" that it took him so long to host the show, noting that SNL alumni Jason Sudeikis and Seth Meyers had hosted before him. "Best saved for last, right?" They said. "Best saved for the last way."
Forte's monologue continued the fun when Kristen Wiig appeared as a surprise guest. And while Fort was having his moment, Lorne Michaels, along with Willem Dafoe, told Forte that their hosting gig may have been a mistake. "You think I'll book someone named Will and then someone named Willem?" Michaels said. "I texted Willem and then, you know, autocorrect."
Will Forte's Monologue! pic.twitter.com/MChfkDCGY8
— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) January 23, 2022
The gig comes nearly two decades after Forte began an eight-season run on SNL, which featured some of the series' most memorable characters; We're talking Faulkner, Greg Stink, Tim Calhoun, Lunford Dancer and, perhaps his most iconic role, McGruber.
"First of all, I think the character is an idiot," he told NBC about the former Special Operative who parodied MacGyver. "And it's always fun to play a fool."
Forte will reprise his McGruber role in the 2021 Peacock series co-starring Kristen Wiig, Laurence Fishburne, Ryan Phillippe and Sam Elliott.
“Sometimes it feels like summer camp to work on these MacGrubers,” he said. "It is, that's a lot of laughs."
Peacock has yet to give the green light to a second season of McGruber, a direct sequel to a 2010 film of the same name.