Dana Carvey Reveals How He Nailed His ‘SNL’ Joe Biden Impression
Famous for his iconic presidential impressions, the comedian played Biden as a confused, spatially unaware, babbling man.
NBC
Dana Carvey shed light on his approach to playing President Joe Biden on the 50th season of Saturday Night Live, revealing that it was “trickier” to nail than some of his other impressions.
The comedian, who famously portrayed President George H. W. Bush and other commander-in-chiefs on the sketch comedy show in the 1990s, reflected on his return to presidential impersonations on his and David Spade’s podcast “Fly on the Wall” Sunday.
“It’s been top secret. I’ve kept it under wraps for weeks,” Carvey said. "But I was asked by Lorne Michaels to come on Saturday Night Live... to do Biden.”
The SNL alum began developing his take on Biden while producing his podcast’s YouTube clips. “I didn’t see it out there enough, Biden [impressionists],” he added.
Although Carvey described mimicking Biden as “trickier,” he said the rhythm of the impression comes from the president’s “high energy” moments.
The Comedian previously played President George H. W. Bush on Saturday Night Live in the 1990's.
Getty Images
“The true north star is to try and make it funny and not really get it to be a political message, per se,” he continued.
The comedian’s Biden impression debuted on Saturday during the show’s 50th season cold open.
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Carvey’s Biden meandered on stage awkwardly alongside Maya Rudolph, playing Kamala Harris, before babbling incoherently at a podium. While delivering a repetitive nonsensical speech about the president’s “Build Back Better” plan, Carvey declared, “I can’t believe it’s not butter!”
The ridiculous line, he said, was somewhat off the cuff. “I didn’t write it down,” Carvey said, adding that he also considered shouting, “Pirates of the Caribbean” and "Bed, Bath and Beyond.”
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