Although it was widely assumed that Horatio Sanz had become persona non grata around Saturday Night Live after NBC and Lorne Michaels got swept up in a lawsuit against the former cast member, he was in fact at Sunday night’s anniversary special.
It was four years ago that Sanz was accused of assaulting an underage fan during his time on the show. Though Sanz and NBC denied the allegations, the suit was settled after his accuser sought to add Jimmy Fallon, Lorne Michaels, and Tracy Morgan as defendants, arguing that they had enabled Sanz’s misconduct.
The accuser later shared her story on ABC’s Nightline, including photos and texts that she said corroborated her allegations.
Though he was once a frequent guest on Fallon’s two late-night shows, and made guest appearances on shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Mandolorian, Sanz hasn’t appeared in any film or TV projects since the case was settled in 2022.
Sanz walked the red carpet last night before the show and could be seen among the crowd of former cast members and hosts on stage for goodnights. (It wasn’t clear whether he was seated in Studio 8H or was among the former cast members seated down the hall in Studio 8G.)
Asked in a red carpet interview with Variety to name the greatest life lesson he learned during his time at SNL, Sanz responded, “Respect people who are ahead of you in years. Listen to them. I think when you’re twenty years old, you have a lot of attitude about, like, get out of here, I know I’m doing. And I wish I would have listened a little more to people who were, you know, a little older and had some sage advice.”
A founding member of the Upright Citizen’s Brigade, Sanz appeared on SNL from 1998-2006. His most memorables characters on the show include Frankie Hilbert in “Boston Teens,” pothead Gobi in “Jarret’s Room,” and A/V teacher Mr. Banglian in “Wake Up, Wakefield.”
