Andy Samberg, Star of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Confesses Why He Left Saturday Night Live: ‘I Was Falling Apart’
Andy Samberg, known for his role in Brooklyn Nine Nine, recently spoke about his departure from Saturday Night Live. During an interview on the Hart to Hart podcast with Kevin Hart, Samberg mentioned that his time on the show had taken a toll on his mental and physical well-being, leading him to make the decision to leave SNL after seven years, with his final appearance being in May 2012.
Samberg, along with his Lonely Island bandmates, played a significant role in the success of the show and helped to popularize it on YouTube. Reflecting on his departure, the Palm Springs actor expressed, “Physically and emotionally, I felt like I was falling apart in my life.”
Andy Samberg on Leaving SNL
Discussing his departure with Kevin Hart, Samberg revealed the difficulty of his decision to leave, citing the impact on his health. He shared, “It was a big choice. For me, it was like, I can’t actually endure it anymore. But I didn’t want to leave.” Samberg also mentioned that appearing on SNL had been a childhood dream of his.
Regarding his work on the show, the Hot Rod star commented, “I was basically left in charge of making the shorts, which I never pretended like I could do without them.” He went on to explain the importance of collaborating with his bandmates.
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Heavy Toll on Mental and Physical Health
In the podcast, Samberg revealed the grueling process of creating content for SNL, involving long hours and little sleep. He described the intense workload, saying, “Physically, it was taking a heavy toll on me and I got to a place where I was like I hadn’t slept in seven years, basically.”
He added, “We were writing stuff for the live show Tuesday night all night, the table read Wednesday, then being told now come up with a digital short so write all Thursday [and] Thursday night, don’t sleep, get up, shoot Friday, edit all night Friday night and into Saturday, so it’s basically like four days a week you’re not sleeping, for seven years. So I just kind of fell apart physically.”
Samberg mentioned that negotiations with SNL about his departure only added to his stress. On the professional front, he is set to star in the sci-fi film Robots Go Crazy.
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