She’s back on the clock and she’s ready to rock.
As we first reported three weeks ago after she was spotted with a film crew at a Target store, Kristen Wiig is starring in a series of ad spots for the discount retailer.
Debuting today, the new commercials celebrate the return of Target Circle Week and the kickoff of the store’s new loyalty program, dubbed “Target Circle.”
In one spot (above), Wiig is seen in her Target-inspired home getting ready for a big day at Target, choosing a red vest (from a section of several dozen), and heading into work via a tunnel she’s apparently dug through the wall of her home.
There’s nothing discount about the spots themselves, which feature music by Prince, who (like Target itself) hailed from Minneapolis, MN.
Other spots show her on the ground at an actual target (a first for the character), and back at her checkout station offering one customer some curious tips on how to use peanut butter.
The national campaign was created in partnership with Wiig, former SNL writer Jameson Anderson and director Tom Kuntz, with Wiig reportedly ad-libbing lines along the way.
Target says the campaign will feature 12 total spots across TV, social media, and digital platforms.
Wiig famously portrayed the overzealous Target cashier in ten SNL sketches beginning in 2005. In each of the sketches, she invariably drives her rushed customers crazy as she enthusiastically comments on each of their products as she scans them.
Wiig developed the character when she was a part of the Los Angeles improv group The Groundlings and brought it with her to Saturday Night Live, which is what allows her to perform it off the show.
Characters created while performers work for SNL are the intellectual property of the show, and tend to only show up in other Lorne Michaels-produced properties, like The Coneheads and Wayne’s World movies. Another exception: Julia Sweeney’s feature film It’s Pat, which was also based on a character developed at The Groundlings and brought to SNL.
Wiig is currently starring in the Apple TV+ series Palm Royale, and this weekend she returns to her old stomping grounds at SNL where she set to join the show’s five timers club.
