Maya Rudolph has been sworn back in to “Saturday Night Live,” where she is expected to play Vice President Kamala Harris through the 2024 presidential election.
Season 50 of “SNL” will premiere on Sept. 28. While Rudolph was preparing to shoot Season 3 of her Apple TV+ comedy series “Loot,” sources indicate that the production has been pushed back to allow Rudolph to return to 30 Rock’s Studio 8H. (Both “Loot” and “SNL” are produced by Universal Television and Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video.)
A spokesperson for “Saturday Night Live,” as well as a representative for Rudolph, could not be reached for comment.
Rudolph first played Harris on “SNL” in December 2019, winning the Emmy for guest actress in a comedy series despite only having a few lines in a presidential debate sketch. She returned throughout the 2020 election cycle to play Harris, whom she coined the “Funt,” aka America’s Fun Aunt, alongside Jim Carrey’s Joe Biden.
Rudolph, who was an “SNL” cast member from 2000 to 2007, played Harris again when she hosted the series in March 2021, which earned her yet another Emmy for guest actress in a comedy series. (She’s up for another one of those in September for her latest hosting stint on May 11, 2024.)
Harris will, of course, be featured more heavily at the beginning of Season 50 as the presidential election ramps up and she becomes the official Democratic nominee. It’s likely Rudolph’s Harris will face off against “SNL” cast member James Austin Johnson’s Donald Trump in a debate — regardless of whether the real candidates engage in one themselves.
Watch footage of Rudolph as Harris below.
From Variety US