Alec Baldwin seems to be returning as President Donald Trump on "Saturday Night Live."
On an episode of the podcast "Origins With James Andrew Miller," released Friday, Baldwin told Miller of the Trump appearances this season, "I think I'm going to do some of it, but not a whole lot."
Executive Producer Lorne Michaels also appeared on the podcast, where he recalled Baldwin telling a fan at the recent U.S. Open that he would be back to parody Trump. And Michaels, who also received a similarly optimistic text from the actor's agent, sounds pretty confident it's a done deal, reports The Washington Post.
"I think there's probably no other actor who is looking to follow Alec," Michaels said. "And I think for a new cast member to come in and try that .. . would be a really tough thing to do."
The news isn't altogether surprising - Baldwin's impersonation has garnered buzz from viewers and critics alike, in addition to earning the president's ire. Baldwin won an Emmy for the impersonation in 2017 and was again nominated for the role this year. But he doesn't love the parody. "Every time I do it now, it's like agony," Baldwin told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this year.
Trump responded that it was "agony for those who were forced to watch" and said he preferred another performer's take, tweeting: "Bring back Darrell Hammond, funnier and a far greater talent!"
Alec Baldwin, whose dying mediocre career was saved by his terrible impersonation of me on SNL, now says playing me was agony. Alec, it was agony for those who were forced to watch. Bring back Darrell Hammond, funnier and a far greater talent!
Baldwin - who was interviewed on "Origins" along with Kenan Thompson and "Weekend Update" hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che - said he has fun being on the long-running NBC sketch comedy show. "They're all old and dear friends of mine, and I love going there. When the show is good, there's nothing like it," Baldwin told Miller.
But Baldwin said he's not going to overdo the parody. For one, "SNL's" after-hours schedule takes him away from his family. If he leaves the show at some point, he told Miller, there is only one person on the show who could take over the Trump role: Kate McKinnon, the Emmy-winning standout who famously impersonated Hillary Clinton during (and after) the 2016 election.
US President Donald Trump. Photo / AP
Still, Baldwin - who is slated to be the keynote speaker at a New Hampshire Democratic Party dinner next month - said he doesn't expect his parody (or anyone else's) to make a difference when it comes to electing officials.
"You can have somebody who comes in who does a Trump that 100 percent of the people in this country approve of that person's performance, they think that he's just the funniest person in the world, they do the best Trump impersonation," Baldwin said on "Origins." "And you wanna know something? That's going to have no impact on the election whatsoever. None. ... The only thing that's gonna to change the course of this election is voter turnout."
There is no word yet on whether Baldwin will appear in the season premiere of "Saturday Night Live," which airs Sept. 29, with host Adam Driver and musical guest Kanye West.
