Heidi Gardner adn Ego Nwodim Reflect on Competitive Atmosphere During Their ‘SNL‘ Tenures
Former Saturday Night Live cast members Heidi Gardner and ego Nwodim recently discussed the challenges of working on the long-running sketch comedy show, acknowledging a competitive environment that could be arduous to navigate. Their comments shed light on the pressures faced by performers striving for success within the show’s ensemble structure, and come amid a recent period of cast turnover for SNL.
Gardner announced her departure from SNL on august 28 after eight seasons, followed by Nwodim’s exit on September 12 after seven.Both departures were part of a larger cast shakeup ahead of Season 51, which also saw Devon Walker, Emil Wakim, and Michael Longfellow leave the show. The pair’s reflections offer insight into the dynamics that contributed to these changes, and the broader experience of working on a show known for launching comedic careers.
“I’m so honored that we worked so hard there,and then we also worked on our friendship so hard,which wasn’t hard,by the way,” Gardner said.”I just mean we’re human, so we have egos, we want things for ourselves, we want to succeed. There weren’t a lot of times we were able to succeed the way we wanted at the exact same time.”
Nwodim echoed this sentiment, stating that it could be challenging to feel like the SNL cast was “winning together,” contributing to the show being “not the easiest place to work.” However, she praised Gardner for remaining a positive force. “But I’m like, if you can leave – in a place where it can get so competitive and you can become so self involved, if you can leave and be still remarkably lovely and such a light and still pouring into othre people like you, I think you succeeded,” Nwodim said.
Gardner added that she was grateful for the friendship she and Nwodim built while on the show, and thankful that egos never got in the way. Ben Marshall, a member of the Please Don’t Destroy group, was promoted to the main cast, while martin Herlihy transitioned to the writing staff and John Higgins departed.
