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Bobby Moynihan Discusses His Exit From SNL and How the Show Became Harder to Make Under Trump

Bobby Moynihan. Photo: D Dipasupil/FilmMagic

Earlier this year, Bobby Moynihan left Saturday Night Live for the relative tranquility of starring in the CBS sitcom Me, Myself & I, a show which, as of yet, hasn’t drawn the ire of America’s president. At a TCA panel today, Moynihan discussed his exit from the NBC sketch series, and reflected on how the show has changed under the pressure of the current political moment. “I’m an unabashed fan of SNL and would have stayed there forever and ever,” Moynihan said, noting that “the day you get SNL, you start worrying about your exit from SNL.” When he knew his contract was ending, Moynihan — who had been on the show since 2008 — went to L.A. and took a meeting. Then, he said that he thought, “I’ve got to make a decision soon” about whether to “hang out at the place I love most, or try and become an adult and move on.”

At the panel, Moynihan also noted that working for SNL became even more exhausting than usual over the last year, as the show tried to keep up with national politics. “I felt like I was on one show for eight years, and another for one year,” he said. “It was a completely different machine last year — took on a whole different level.” Still, Moynihan noted that he was “thankful” he was there for the past season, and added that although it was the “hardest year, easily” of his tenure, it was “also weirdly, maybe, deep down, one of my favorites.” Perhaps some of the clouds of the Trump administration really do have silver linings.

Bobby Moynihan Discusses His Exit From SNL