For his latest nonfiction role, Gabriel LaBelle had a rare peek inside his character’s world.
The Saturday Night star recently recalled his visit to 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where he saw a Saturday Night Live taping and met creator Lorne Michaels while portraying him in the film, which premieres nationwide on Oct. 11 following a limited release.
“Our first two days of shooting were in New York, just to shoot outside of 30 Rock, and Lorne was super cool and invited us to watch the Josh Brolin episode live,” he told IndieWire. “And so a handful of us, those who live in New York and then those who were just in New York to shoot regardless, we were able to go and check it out. It was really great.
“Lorne was there, and I actually got to speak with him briefly after the show. We didn’t say too much to each other. But [director Jason Reitman] was there. Peter Rice, our producer, was there. And Scarlett Johansson, who just did the cold open, was there. [Laughs] And I let them all have a conversation, and I didn’t really need to contribute too much,” added LaBelle.
Saturday Night takes place on October 11, 1975, as a ferocious troupe of young comedians and writers change television forever. Formerly titled SNL 1975, the film tells the true story of what happened behind the scenes that night in the 90 minutes leading up to the first-ever broadcast of SNL.
Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner, Kim Matula as Jane Curtain, Cooper Hoffman as Dick Ebersol, Rachel Sennott as Rosie Shuster, Lamorne Morris as Garrett Morris, Josh Brener as Alan Zweibel and Gabriel LaBelle as Lorne Michaels in Saturday Night.
Sony
Whether or not Michaels has seen his portrayal, LaBelle said, “I don’t know. I think Jason is in contact with Lorne. Lorne’s been very kind and congratulatory to Jason, but I don’t know if he’s seen it. I think that, if he does see it, Jason would reach out to me and … I don’t know. But then I don’t know if Lorne were to see it, if he’d tell Jason right away.”
Earlier this month at Toronto Film Festival, Reitman said Michaels “has not seen the movie yet,” adding, “I don’t know if he’ll ever tell me his reaction because he’s a cryptic person. Obviously, he was the first person I ever reached out to. I’ve been speaking to him throughout this process.”
Saturday Night also stars Rachel Sennott as Rosie Shuster, Dylan O’Brien as Dan Aykroyd, Cory Michael Smith as Chevy Chase, Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner, Emily Fairn as Laraine Newman, Matt Wood as John Belushi, Lamorne Morris as Garrett Morris, Kim Matula as Jane Curtin, Nicholas Braun as Andy Kaufman/Jim Henson, Cooper Hoffman as Dick Ebersol, Kaia Gerber as Jacqueline Carlin and Willem Dafoe as David Tebet.
Meanwhile, SNL kicked off its milestone 50th season last weekend, returning this Saturday with guest host Nate Bargatze and musical guest Coldplay.