Kristen Wiig And Conan Remember Their Biggest "Bombs" At SNL | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

hi my name is Kristen wig and I feel. warm about being Conan O'Brien's friend. okay Kristen I think that's just the. temperature in the room I honestly think. it is a very elevated room temperature. it's a nice temperature but I do I feel. warm being here I am uh so happy that. you're here thanks because I remember. when you got cast on SNL. and um.

absolutely adoring you and thinking like. this is the is I think this is like the. funniest person I've seen yeah and and I. say that this will not air um uh period. period we're going to find out a way to. block it to all the other SNL people. I've talked to so they never hear that. you're just so insanely funny and uh I. met you we had you on the show and I was. we and just one time uh and then I moved. on to other things we uh and we didn't.

get to really connect again and so if. nothing else when I found out that you. were going to come in today I was just I. thought this is my chance to tell you. just how blown away I am by you as a. performer singer songwriter dancer I'm. just making up things you don't probably. do well I do do those. things you a dancer really good dancer I. mean no I I used to I've danced yes.

you do one well actually I you do a. character uh Gilly and Gilly doesn't has. an intro number and does a dance to it. and I love good physical comedy and it's. one of my favorite things when you break. into uh first of all I think all. characters everywhere I was talking. about this with Robert Smigel the other. day and we worked together at SNL and we. were talking about yeah I like him fine. but we talked we were talking about a. sketch that we wrote for Tom Hanks. called Mr short-term memory how we.

insisted this is like. 1988 that know that it has to have a a. theme song and I remember Doren was like. no it doesn't need a the sketches don't. have theme song openings and we said no. it has to and we had a whole animated. opening where Tom hanks's character gets. hit by a pear sitting under a pear. tree wait it was animated it was like. yeah he's like sitting under you know. it's Mr short-term memory he never he. never should have sat under that pear. tree now he has no memory but he never.

know and you'll love him whatever he'll. frustrate you so cuz he's Mr short-term. anyway um we wrote this whole theme song. and I always thought I think it should. be a law that all sketch characters have. a ridiculous theme song that wastes time. it's a good way to get rid of the nerves. I got to say that's a great yeah because. you're like dancing and shaking and then. you're like okay H I don't know because. it's obviously a very nerve-wracking job. yeah it is a nerve-wracking job you. wouldn't know it looking at your. performances but I remembered you doing. the Ghillie dance and the dance.

incorporates maybe nine different very. distinct moves that probably aren't. supposed to all go together so funny. thank you it's so funny that means a lot. coming from you Conan well I appreciate. that but I just I I was your your body. of work on SNL alone just not even. getting into your other tremendous work. uh is crazy you're so prolific and then. to hear you say it gets out the nerves. and I think it is nice for people. listening and probably revelatory that.

they hear Christan wig has nerves oh my. God yes I think if you I would be. worried about myself if I didn't. especially with SNL because it's live um. yeah you feel like you want to throw up. for every show I always say the good. thing is because you have dress. rehearsal so you kind of know what sort. of works but you know there could be. things that work in dress and then. you're like waiting for the some sort of. giggle and then it's silent during air.

that happens all the time a false. positive oh there's nothing worse is uh. yeah well actually in medicine it's a. very good thing sometimes you're not. dying um so sometimes it works out but a. false positive in comedy and what would. happen sometimes it's it's rare but. something can really do well at dress. usually doesn't happen but it's a. different crowd and then what happens is. they do the air show and the air show. sometimes s that's when all the.

executives got their friends in maybe. you know Lauren has some Pals there just. a lot of people are coming in and so. they're a different crowd maybe a little. more entitled maybe they've seen the. show a bunch it's just such a diff I. mean I. remember Charles Barkley was hosting and. I wrote a sketch with Jillian Bell and. it was for the writer room it got the. best reaction I've ever had in the. history of the time that I was there I.

mean like people were clapping were like. oh this is going to be this is going to. be a really great sketch and when I tell. you when we went to dress and you know. when like the first joke comes out and. like that's the sketch so if they're not. going to laugh at that you got about it. feels like 18 minutes of like silence it. was so silent and I was just looking at. other people in the sketch like Andy and. they're Bill they're like looking at me. laughing like this is going so it was.

just absolutely silent I I couldn't even. predict that that was going to happen. but I it's good also because then it. kind of like keeps you on your toes you. don't expect certain things but the the. the way that it bombed was just uh for. the books I I wrote a sketch same thing. for Phil Hartman this is before you were. born but uh I wrote a sketch for Phil. Hartman way back in the day and it was.

an funny an idea I liked where he he. played this character mace he was he was. really tough and T really fast and he. was Mace and he had done it at the. Groundlings and it was this you us to me. and us to be good I'm going to kill you. I'm going to crush you skull and it was. this great character and I thought oh. this is terrific he gets put he uh. whoever the host was and I don't. remember but the male host gets put in a. prison cell with him and the male host. is whoever it was has mace as his. cellmate and mace comes on is so tough. and hard and you're not going to make it. pretty boy this is me I'm the king of.

this so you know and and and then you. know the way in those cells there just. an exposed. toilet it comes time they're both there. for a while and then it's clear that. mace has to use the toilet but he's. embarrassed about using it in front of. the other guy in this very shy human way. and he's like putting little pieces of. toilet paper down he's trying to do it. when the other guy's back is turned and. whenever the guy turns back he goes like. you keep looking the other way buddy boy. and and it was just all about this very.

so funny to me no and so we did this. thing at we we read it at at at read. through and like tile was coming off the. ceiling people were laughing so hard and. it's over and the Applause and people. coming up and yeah you know Lauren. actually making eye contact and I would. give you a gold coin you know and you're. just feeling amazing and then dress. rehearsal and it starts and then there's. the first thing which is the whole. sketch where you realize that mace wants. to use the toilet the toughest guy in. the world but he's ashamed in front of.

this other guy and is trying to get him. to turn his back by using different. tricks and go to the back and silence. silence and I remember I had called. everybody oh you know you're going I. going have a sketch of course I did of. course I did Christ cuz I'm a writer and. I'm like tune in cuz you all thought I. didn't have it well you're going to see. a sketch tonight with Phil Hartman. called me you know watch this and then. just absolute silence and that thing. where they say the last line well that's.

the way it goes long pause then the. band and no applause and then you don't. even have to go in to the room you know. it's it's never going to make a and just. I you want to do an autopsy afterwards. and find out like what why did it work. there and not maybe there's something. about seeing it as opposed to just. reading it I I I. know as you know I just gave it up at a.

certain point and said there's magic to. this sometimes the magic is there. sometimes it's not I give up I can't. explain it there's no reason yeah well. that's probably why a little bit of the. nerves too because you don't you don't. know what the audience is if they're in. a good mood or but also it's interesting. to me like people often see me backstage. when I'm going to do something and I'm. doing a lot of stretching and I'm kind. of getting very focused.

and they are surprised because they've. said like you've done 4,000. hours you must have no. nerves and I've think I've you know I've. often said I don't care who you are or. what your track record is you are always. potentially 10 seconds away from the. worst humiliation of your life of course. and I almost feel like the more you've. done it then I don't know you're kind of. like well I'm due for something.