Pete Davidson, Jason Sudeikis & More Reveal ‘SNL’ Pay and How They Spent Money
Pete Davidson, Jason Sudeikis, Cheri Oteri, and other Saturday Night Live stars have opened up about the salary they made on the long-running NBC sketch show, and it’s not as much as you might think.
In an interview for New York Magazine, the comedians were asked about their “biggest splurge” after receiving their first SNL paycheck. For many, the purchases were fairly modest, with them explaining that the show doesn’t pay enough to splash out on any extravagant indulgences.
“Do you guys know what they pay us?” Davidson said. “It’s like three grand an episode, so I think I got dinner.”
“I mean, you don’t make enough money to make big purchases,” Ted Lasso star Sudeikis added. “So, I think New York rent was probably the biggest purchase I made after writing on SNL the first year.”
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Several SNL stars admitted to using their first paycheck to purchase furniture, with James Austin Johnson saying, “We bought the most uncomfortable West Elm couch of all time. I swear to god, it’s like, made of bricks.”
Seth Meyers purchased a couch, too, as well as a “big TV from Best Buy.”
Oteri also revealed she bought a couch, noting, “I have gotten it reupholstered three or four times. I remember a designer coming over in tears, and he goes, ‘Oh, those arms are too high. We’re going to get rid of that couch.’ I said, ‘Oh no. No, you’re not. Not today, Satan!’”
Current SNL star Sarah Sherman said, “A mattress… a nice mattress!”
Others purchased clothes, with Sarah Silverman confessing she bought a “cashmere sweater” that was $300. Bowen Yang said he got himself “a pair of Gucci shoes” that he “wouldn’t feel super cool wearing out now.”
Julia Louis-Dreyfus also said she bought a pair of shoes “that were out of my budget,” noting that she thinks they were $75.
You can watch the full video to hear more from the SNL stars above.
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