Two nights before Saturday Night Live Season 46 kicks off, NBC shared the first look at Jim Carrey as former Vice President Joe Biden. Maya Rudolph will be joining him as Biden’s running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris. Rudolph played Harris throughout Season 45 and won an Emmy for her guest appearance in Eddie Murphy’s episode just last month.
The brief clip shows Carrey’s make-up being applied and Rudolph’s hair being done to mimic Harris’. One shot even shows Rudolph tying up a pair of Converse Chuck Taylor shoes, a reference to Harris’ favorite shoes. The two will join Chris Rock, who is hosting Saturday’s episode, and musical guest Megan Thee Stallion. The episode begins at 11:30 p.m. ET.
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NBC announced last month that Carrey will be playing Biden in the new season. Cast member Jason Sudeikis previously played the Democratic presidential candidate during President Barack Obama’s administration. Woody Harrelson also appeared as Biden during Season 45. Alec Baldwin will be back to play President Donald Trump, as he has for more than five years. Beck Bennett, a regular cast member, will continue playing Vice President Mike Pence.
Carrey has been on SNL several times, hosting in 1996, 2011, and 2014. In an interview with Vulture last month, SNL executive producer Lorne Michaels said it was Carrey who reached out to him about playing Biden. “There was some interest on his part,” Michaels explained. “And then we responded, obviously, positively. But it came down to discussions about what the take was. He and Colin Jost had a bunch of talks. He and I as well. He will give the part energy and strength, and โฆ [Laughs.] Hopefully, it’s funny.”
The new season brings SNL back to Studio 8H after finishing last season with three SNL At Home episodes. There are also three new cast members, Lauren Holt, Punkie Johnson and Andrew Dismukes, who was previously on the writing staff. “All three of [the new cast members] are people with original voices and talent,” Michaels told Vulture of the new cast. “They’re bringing something that we now don’t have. And also, Kate will be back for all these election shows.”
Viewers will get to see a lot of Carrey as Biden. Since the season is starting later than usual, NBC will air five consecutive new SNL episodes, beginning with the season premiere. The next new episodes will air on Oct. 10, Oct. 17, Oct. 24, and Oct. 31.