SNL at the Olympics: NBC Revs Up SNL50 Promo Machine with John Mulaney

Colin Jost and Kenan Thompson aren’t the only Saturday Night Live stars participating in NBC’s coverage of the Summer Olympics. 

After being offered a trip to Paris on NBC’s dime, John Mulaney packed his bags for France and brought along fellow former SNL writer Simon Rich. Over the next two weeks, a bevy of SNL stars past and present will stop by the games to help promote the show’s milestone 50th season

Mulaney kicked off the SNL50 promo machine on Sunday night, sitting down with Mike Tirico to chat about his first time attending the Olympics and reminiscence about his years as a writer on the show. The Everybody’s in LA creator called it a “real thrill” to be there. 

“Opening ceremony was great,” Mulaney said. “Very egalitarian in the sense that there were billionaires and there were interns, and no matter who you were, you were in a clear smock getting rained on on a bridge. Elon Musk? Clear poncho. Intern? Clear poncho.”

When asked about his favorite SNL memory, Mulaney just happened to have the perfect story to share. It turns out that Charles Barkley, who has hosted SNL four times over the years, is partially to thank for Mulaney’s trip to the Olympics. 

“One of my favorite memories is the reason that I am here [at the Olympics] with my friend Simon,” Mulaney told Tirico. “Simon and I were writers from about 2008 to 2012, and Charles Barkley hosted during that time. You know, you’d meet with the host and you’d talk about sketches, but this night we said, ‘Let’s just ask him for stories.’”

“[Barkley] comes into our office, he takes up the whole couch,” he said. “And we say, ‘What was the Dream Team like in ‘92?’ And he said, ‘Boys, have you ever been to the Olympics?’ We said no, and he goes, ‘If you ever get the chance to go, do it.’ … So that is why, when I got a chance to come to the Olympics, I called my friend Simon and said, ‘We gotta do it.’”

Tirico then joked that Mulaney should have brought Barkley as his guest to the Olympics. “Next time,” Tirico laughed. “SNL75you can do it.”

Season 50 of SNL kicks off September 28, 2024 on NBC. 

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