Looking back on the audition that launched his career, Seth Meyers admitted he approached the opportunity with military precision. During an appearance on the “Hey Jonas!” podcast, the comedian shared new details about the nerve-racking experience. He revealed how he timed every second, carefully picked his impressions, and performed in front of some of comedy’s biggest names.
Treating Every Second Like It Counted
According to the “Hey Jonas!” podcast, Meyers said the audition itself was intimidating before he even began performing. Instead of standing in a comedy club or an office, he had to perform from the famous “Saturday Night Live” monologue stage.
That made the moment even more surreal.
Seth Meyers – whose 2019 comedy special “Seth Meyers: Lobby Baby” is available on Netflix – explained why his audition was even more nerve-wracking than he had expected. He was standing in front of Lorne Michaels and Tina Fey, plus producers and writers who had spent their careers watching exceptional comedians.
“It would be weird enough” in a regular audition room, he said. Doing it from such an iconic stage made the experience even more daunting.
Meyers also appreciated one part of the process. Rather than reading someone else’s material, he was asked to perform his own comedy.
Looking back, he said that allowed him to show his “own voice” in a way that scripted material could not.
Still, creating original material for Lorne Michaels only added to the pressure.
As reported by the “Hey Jonas!” podcast, Seth Meyers described himself as “such a rule junkie.” That mindset even influenced how he planned his performance.
He recalled taking out a calculator and dividing five minutes by six. Since he had been told to perform three impressions and three original characters, he wanted each segment to receive exactly the same amount of time.
In the end, he joked, “I did exactly five minutes.”
Seth Meyers Chose Three Very Different Impressions
The interview also revealed which celebrities Meyers selected for his 2001 audition: Hugh Grant, Russell Crowe and David Arquette.
The Russell Crowe impression was inspired by the actor’s “Gladiator” era. Meyers imagined him as a humorless talk show host. Whenever one of his jokes failed, Crowe would shout, “Are you not entertained?”
Seth Meyers said the sketch was funny enough that the “SNL” team later tried developing it for the show. However, it never made it to air. “Saturday Night Live” producer Michael Shoemaker eventually explained why the impression struggled on screen, and it had nothing to do with the jokes.
Instead, Shoemaker thought Meyers simply did not look convincing as the Oscar-winning actor. “The problem,” Meyers recalled Shoemaker saying, “is your neck is the size of half of his neck.”
That physical difference made it impossible to capture Crowe’s imposing presence. As Meyers put it, he “can’t be menacing” the way Russell Crowe naturally is.
The Audition That Opened the Door
Seth Meyers’ retelling of his initial “SNL” experience highlighted how much preparation went into the audition. Every impression was carefully chosen. Every second was planned. Even the timing was calculated.
That discipline ultimately paid off.
The audition earned Meyers a place on “Saturday Night Live,” where he spent years as a cast member before becoming the show’s longtime head writer. He later launched a successful late-night career, but the “Hey Jonas!” interview showed he still remembers every detail of the five minutes that helped change his life.
Watch the “Hey Seth Meyers!” episode of the “Hey Jonas!” podcast in full here.
