Will Ferrell Revives Failed ‘SNL’ Sketch on ‘Late Night With Seth Meyers’

Seth Meyers and Will Ferrell gave a failed a second chance via Second Chance Theatre. On Late Night with Seth Meyers, Ferrell, John Oliver, Bowen Yang, and Rachel Dratch performed an SNL skit that never made the final cut, “Mr. Kotter.” The sketch sees Ferrell dressed like Gabe Kaplan’s titular character in the 1970s ABC sitcom . Kaplan is supposedly a client at the accounting firm the sketch takes place at, and Ferrell is upset when he finds out he missed him since he was the reason he took the job in the first place and is dressed like Kaplan.

The entire sketch consisted of Ferrell wanting to meet Kaplan and telling his co-workers that if the actor ever came by again to let him know, no matter where he is or what he’s doing. Just as Ferrell leaves the break room, Kaplan calls, saying he left his briefcase and wants someone to take it to his house. Dratch, Yang, and Oliver opt to all go down there, unfortunately leaving Ferrell behind as the Welcome Back, Kotter theme song plays in the background.

After the sketch, Meyers sat down with the four to talk about it. They all discussed how it was like doing the sketch during dress rehearsal and then again for real, and giving the audience an inside look at what goes on during SNL. They also talked about how harsh the office workers were to Ferrell’s character, especially when they all left at the end to deliver the briefcase. With the Kotter sketch having initially bombed, Yang, Dratch, and Oliver also shared a time they had bombed, proving that even the funniest people mess up.

“Everybody fails,” Meyers reminded the audience. While it’s definitely a shame that the “Mr. Kotter” sketch never saw the light of day at Studio 8H, it’s a good thing that Seth Meyers and Will Ferrell were able to revive it, even if just for one time. It’s always possible that “Mr. Kotter” could become a full-fledged sketch in the future, but it really would only work with Ferrell. Perhaps next time, they can even bring on Gabe Kaplan himself. That would definitely be a funny sketch.

Second Chance Theatre is a segment on Late Night with Seth Meyers that gives failed SNL sketches the chance to thrive and writers and actors the chance to shine. It’s been a while since the segment was last on the air, and “Mr. Kotter” was the perfect way to bring it back.